 
POSEIDON'S  
ACADEMY

BOOK 1

SARAH A VOGLER
First Published in Australia by Aurora House

www.aurorahouse.com.au

This edition published 2018

Copyright (C) Sarah A Vogler 2018

Typesetting: Allen Smalley

Cover design: Simon Critchell

The right of Sarah A Vogler to be identified as the Author of the Work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

ISBN number: 978-0-6483509-4-1 (epub)

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

National Library of Australia Cataloguing in Publication entry:

_For my parents, who have_

_always believed in me_
**Acknowledgments**

Writing _Poseidon 's Academy_ and getting it published has felt a lot like battling a minotaur--the arduous process brought me to my knees many times, making me think my writing career was over before it had even started. Thankfully, I was lucky enough to have a multitude of amazing people in my life, who have cheered me on and helped bring _Poseidon 's Academy_ to life.

Thank you to my parents, Sharyn and Stephen, for reading every grammatically-flawed story I wrote as a kid, and for spurring me on to follow my dreams. Thank you to my best friend Lauren for acting as my one-woman cheerleading squad, always giving me that burst of motivation when I needed it. Thank you to my writing buddies--Sarah, Shannon, and Kara--for all your constructive criticism. Thank you to everyone who offered to read my novel, or parts of it, and gave me advice. Thank you to Nikki Williamson and Philippa Donovan for appraising my book and pointing out areas that needed strengthening. Thank you to my tutors and lecturers at The University of Queensland, especially Kim Wilkins and Charlotte Nash-Stewart, for helping me grow as a writer. Thank you to my publisher, Linda Lycett, for helping make my dreams a reality. And thank you to Sharnai James-Mcgovern for proofreading. Without each of you, _Poseidon 's Academy_ would still be a work-in-progress.
**Greek Mythology  
Pronunciation Guide**

(Note: this is a general guide only. Certain names have varying pronunciations.)

**THE GODS**

Aceso: uh-key-so

Anemoi: uh-nem-oy

Aphrodite: afro-die-tee

Apollo: uh-pol-o

Ares: air-eez

Artemis: ar-tuh-miss

Asclepius: as-kleh-pee-uhs

Athena: uh-thee-na

Chione: key-own-knee

Demeter: deh-mee-tur

Hades: hay-deez

Hebe: hee-bee

Hecate: hek-uh-tay

Hephaestus: huh-fes-tus

Hera: hair-uh

Heracles: hair-uh-cleez

Hermes: her-meez

Hestia: hes-tee-uh

Hypnos: hip-nos

Persephone: per-sef-uh-nee

Poseidon: poh-sigh-den

Prometheus: pro-me-thee-us

Protogenoi: pro-toe-jen-oy

Thanatos: than-uh-tos

Titans: tight-ens

Tyche: ty-key

Zeus: zoos

**NYMPHS**

Dryad: dry-ad

Naid: ney-ad

Nereid: neer-ee-id

**PLACES**

Elysian Fields/Elysium: e-lee-zee-uhn fields/

e-lee-zee-uhm

Olympus: uh-lim-pus

Tartarus: tar-ta-rus

**MONSTERS AND CREATURES**

Centaur: sen-tor

Cerberus: ser-bur-us

Chimera: ky-meer-uh

Cyclops: sigh-clops

Erinys/Erinyes: e-rin-es/e-rin-eez

Harpy: hahr-pee

Hippocampus/Hippocampi: hip-uh-kam-pus/hip-uh-kam-pee

Lycaon: lie-kay-on

Medusa: meh-doo-sa

Minotaur: min-uh-tor

Nemean Lion: nee-me-un lion

Pegasus: peg-uh-suhs

Scylla: sil-uh

Siren: sigh-ren

Sphinx: sfingks

Stymphalian Birds: stim-fey-lee-uhn birds

**1**

**The Letter**

Hailey perched on the roof of her two-storey brick house, oblivious to the pair of teenage girls giggling at the end of her street. One of them pressed her hands onto the road. The asphalt shuddered and moaned, great big cracks tearing through the black ground as water gushed up from underneath it, transforming the road into a crystal blue lake. The second girl stirred her hand through the water, ice blasting from her fingertips and shooting down the lake, freezing it solid.

'Ice rink,' both girls shouted. 'Ice rink. Ice rink.'

Children piled out of houses, pulling on skates and scrambling onto the frozen water.

Their laughter didn't register with Hailey, whose gaze remained fixed on the envelope clutched in her hands. It smelled of salt, reminding her of sunny days at the beach. The address read:

Miss Hailey Woods

12 Golden Fleece Place

Calliope Gardens

London

A gold trident bordered by the letters P and A was stamped on the back, with a swirl of gold water encircling it. Hailey's stomach grew heavy as she thought about the letter inside, which would either inform her of her acceptance to or rejection from Poseidon's Academy: the high school every eligible teenager in the world strived to get into.

Poseidon's Academy was no ordinary high school. It was an underwater palace that had once been the Olympian god Poseidon's home. No one had ever seen it--aside from accepted students, who whispered of jewel-encrusted walls and sea-nymphs.

Hailey doubted Poseidon appreciated the conversion of his palace into a school, but he wasn't in a position to complain considering he, and every other god, was dead. And had been for sixteen centuries now--compliments to humans killing them in the Great Battle.

Although Hailey supposed you could say they had lived on--at least in a small way--because when they'd died, their powers had showered from the sky to the human race, turning everyone into demigods. And since then, the gods' powers have passed down through each generation, so every human in the world has a power.

The cold touch of a raindrop sliding down Hailey's cheek had her gazing up at a grey cloud encroaching on the sun. She flicked her hand at it, watching the cloud speed away out of sight, leaving the sky azure blue.

Hailey was a Zeus. The only Zeus in over a century, to be exact, which meant her powers came with certain expectations. Her mind flashed back to the last Powers class she'd had before the summer holidays...

_Hailey stood in a grassy field, the sweet and earthy scent of rain hanging in the air. Her teacher, Mrs Pritchet, loomed behind her with the rest of her class. But Hailey was too busy focusing her powers to remember they were there._

_Warmth flowed through her fingertips towards the black sky, and a rope-shaped tornado whirled to life fifty yards ahead_ _of her._

_' Not good enough, Hailey.' Mrs Pritchet marched to Hailey's side and clucked her tongue. 'That feeble thing couldn't even pick up a shovel.'_

_' I'm trying,' Hailey protested._

_' Try harder.'_

_' Yeah, make it bigger,' one of her classmates called out from behind her. 'Big enough to rip someone's roof off.'_

_' I bet she can't do it,' she heard someone else say._

_' There's no way,' someone replied. 'She sucks at being a Zeus. I'd be so much better.'_

_Hailey blocked out their voices and concentrated on intensifying the tornado. The warmth flowing from her fingertips grew hotter, and her hands trembled. The tornado expanded into a funnel shape, stirring up the grass and dirt and whipping about Hailey 's auburn hair._

_' Good,' Mrs Pritchet said. 'Now create a second one, while keeping the first one contained.'_

_Hailey 's hands trembled even more. 'A second one?'_

_' Yes. Do it now.'_

_Hailey gulped. She kept one shaking hand extended towards the tornado and moved her other hand slightly to the left, where a rope tornado materialised beside the first one, whooshing in and out of existence as Hailey tried to control it. Pain bloomed in her head. 'I can't,' she said through gritted teeth._

_' Do it.'_

_Hailey focused on growing the second tornado, the heat pouring from her fingertips burning like fire. Come on. You can do this. A wave of dizziness swept over her, and a trail of warm blood trickled from her nose. She couldn 't take it anymore. The tornadoes vanished in an instant as she hunched over, fighting the urge to pass out._

_' We're not finished,' Mrs Pritchet snapped._

_' That was so lame,' one of the students complained._

_' Told you she couldn't do it.'_

_When the dizziness passed, Hailey straightened, wiping the blood from her nose. 'I'm not strong enough,' she told Mrs Pritchet. 'Please don't make me do it again.'_

_' You have to, Hailey. You are the only Zeus. The one person with the King of the Gods's powers. And that means you have a responsibility to this world to master your abilities. Or are you forgetting about the prophecy? It says--'_

_' I know what it says.'_

_' Then I shouldn't have to remind you how important harnessing your powers is. I hope your next Powers teacher won't tolerate your laziness. Now try again, and this time do it properly.'_

The memory pressed against Hailey's chest. She was sick of the pressure that came with being a Zeus. That's why getting into Poseidon's Academy was so important to her, because being underwater meant no sky. _No sky means no powers. No powers means freedom_.

She glanced back at the envelope. Inside it she could feel something with two pointed tips. She resisted ripping the letter open to find out what it was. She'd promised her two best friends she'd wait for them so they could open their letters together.

A door creaked open below her, and a few seconds later a redbud tree blooming purple-pink flowers sprang up ten feet to her left. Standing on one of its branches was her best friend Demi. 'Come on, Hails. I'll give you a lift down.'

Hailey leapt to her feet, forgetting she was on a slanted roof. She lost her balance and tumbled forward, the envelope flying from her hand as her arms flailed, trying to grab on to something. But there was only air. _Air. Wind!_

Warmth surged down Hailey's arms and shot from her fingertips as she toppled over the roof's edge.

A gale of wind rushed up and caught her, suspending her in the air. At the same time, two flower-coated tree branches wrapped around her waist. 'Thanks,' she called to Demi as the tree branches lowered her into the backyard: a grass-covered square edged with drooping sunflowers.

'No problem,' Demi called back, using her powers to unwrap the branches around Hailey's waist and shrink them back into the redbud tree.

'Nice form.' Her friend Jayden stood in front of her, grinning. 'That landing was much better than the last time you fell off the roof, but not as good as the time before that, or the time before that.'

'What can I say, I like practising my acrobatics,' Hailey joked, and then noticed a red mark on Jayden's forehead. 'What happened to your head?'

'Someone turned your street into an ice rink again,' he said simply, running a hand through his spiked up black hair before holding out an envelope. 'You dropped this.'

Hailey took it back, her stomach growing heavy again now that she was no longer distracted with plummeting off the roof.

'Don't you dare open those without me!' Demi warned, leaping from the redbud tree, which was back to its twenty-foot size, and bounding over to them. 'Okay, let's do this.' Demi ripped her envelope open before she'd even finished her sentence and snatched out the letter. 'We are pleased to inform you,' Demi read aloud. 'I got in!' She bounced on her toes. 'I got in! I got in!' Her emerald green eyes darted to Hailey and Jayden, and she stopped bouncing. 'Hurry up and read.'

Hailey blew out a breath and peeled open the envelope, unfolding the letter inside.

Dear Miss Hailey Woods

We are pleased to inform you of your acceptance into Poseidon's Academy. Please find enclosed a travelling necklace that will transport you to Poseidon's Island where you will meet your fellow classmates before departing for Poseidon's Academy. Please also find enclosed a list of required supplies and textbooks.

First term begins on 1 January. Your departure time is 4.33pm. Please ensure you place the enclosed travelling necklace over your head at this exact time in order to avoid any collisions.

Warm regards

Guinevere Grayson

First Years Overseer

The letter almost dropped from Hailey's hands as the heaviness in her stomach washed away. She'd done it. She'd gotten into Poseidon's Academy. In four months she'd be at a new school with people who didn't know who she was or what she could do. And even if they did know about her powers, they couldn't make her use them.

She glanced back into the envelope and pulled out a gold winged pendant hanging from a thin chain. It was beautiful. More beautiful than her own bronze travelling necklace, which only allowed her to travel within London.

'You got a necklace!' Demi exclaimed. 'That means you got accepted.'

'Me too,' Jayden said, holding up his own travelling necklace.

'Awesome!' Demi squealed, throwing her arms around their shoulders and squeezing them into a group hug before bouncing on her toes again. 'Next year is going to be the best year ever.'

'Yeah, I can't believe we all got in. Blue skies.' Hailey was beyond grateful she'd be starting her new life with her best friends.

'I'm not surprised, considering how amazing our powers are.'

'Modesty, Demi,' Jayden rebuked her.

'It's true.' Demi flicked her wavy brown hair behind her shoulder and raised her arms. The dying sunflowers sprang to life: their stems straightened, and their petals glowed vibrant yellow. 'How many Demeters my age can do that?'

'About as many Poseidons as can do this.' Jayden curled his fingers at the garden hose, which lay abandoned a few feet away. It hissed to life, water spurting from the nozzle. Jayden waved his hand at the garden, and the water blasted up, showering over the flowers like rain.

'Modesty, Jayden.' Demi mimicked his censorious tone.

'That looks much better. Thanks, kids.' Hailey's mum appeared from the side of the house. A variety of paint colours smeared her skin and overalls. Even her auburn hair, which was tied in a ponytail, was speckled with blue.

'Happy to help, Evonee.' Jayden waved his hand to shut the hose off.

'We got into Poseidon's Academy,' Demi blurted, holding out her acceptance letter as proof.

'I figured that,' Evonee said and moved towards Hailey, pulling her into a tight hug. 'I'm so proud of you, kiddo. But I can't bear to be separated, so I'm coming with you.' Evonee broke from the hug, shrinking several inches while her face seemed to stretch and contract at the same time.

'Mum, don't,' Hailey begged, but it was too late. Her mum had already reverted into a thirteen year old.

'How do I look?' she asked, her voice soft and sweet.

'Change back,' Hailey demanded, covering her eyes.

'I love your Hebe powers,' Demi said.

'I definitely think you could sneak into Poseidon's Academy with us,' Jayden added.

'Hear that, sweetie? We're going to be roomies.'

Hailey pressed her hands tighter against her eyes. Seeing her mum the same age as her was a level of creepiness her brain could not handle. 'Mum, stop it.'

Evonee laughed. 'Okay.' Her voice had lost its girlish tone.

Hailey relaxed when she saw her mum looking like her usual thirty-year-old self. Although technically she was more like forty--being a Hebe, she could control how young she looked. 'Thank you,' Hailey said. 'I wish you could come with me,' she added.

'Me too.' Evonee's smile faltered. 'Well, I need to get back to painting. Congratulations everyone.' She turned to leave and then glanced back at Hailey. 'Oh, and you're banned from the art studio.'

'What? Why?'

'It's a surprise,' Evonee said and scurried off before Hailey could pester her further.

'Hang on.' Demi squinted at her acceptance letter. 'This says we start January first. That's forever away.'

'I guess it's only fair though,' Jayden said, 'considering Poseidon's Academy takes students from all over the world--not everyone's first term begins at the end of the year like ours do.'

'But I don't want to wait that long.'

Jayden threw an arm around her shoulders. 'Just think, you'll have an extra few months to practise your powers so you can outshine all the other Demeters when you get there.'

'That's true.' Demi perked up.

'Come on, let's celebrate with some ice skating,' Jayden suggested.

'Wait. Hailey never got to show off her powers.'

'Me? No. I don't want to.' If someone other than her friends saw her using her powers, it would lead to people banging down her door to make requests for her to do something "Zeus worthy", like make the sky rain fireballs.

'Come on, Hails,' Jayden prompted. 'It's only us.'

Hailey scanned for peeping neighbours. But no one was around, thanks to the ice rink out front. 'Okay,' she gave in, figuring she only had so long left with her powers, so she might as well use them. She raised her arms, warmth returning to her fingertips and flowing towards the sky.

A chill swept around the backyard.

'Cold air, really? That's so boring.' Demi crossed her arms, unimpressed.

'Look.' Jayden pointed up.

Snowflakes drifted from the patch of sky above them.

'Okay, snow in summer, that's much better.'

Hailey smiled at the snowflakes fluttering down, feeling just a little proud of the fact she'd created them. And then she remembered this would be one of the last times she'd get to use her powers. Her chest tightened.

_It 's the only way_, she reminded herself. _I 'll never be free otherwise._

**2**

**Poseidon 's Island**

Hailey's skin erupted in tingles, and the world spun around her in melting and merging colours. She squeezed her eyes shut, wishing it would end before her somersaulting stomach expelled the chocolate-chip pancakes she'd had for lunch.

She could still smell the scent of turpentine and vanilla that had clung to her mum as she'd hugged her goodbye seconds ago. Hailey held on to that smell, imagining she was back at her house and not being hurled through space.

Her head and stomach calmed when she arrived at her destination. Gingerly, she opened her eyes and gasped.

Before her an endless sea stretched, the sun glinting off the water, making it sparkle like a sea of aquamarines, sapphires, and turquoises. Waves rolled onto the beach, their steady rhythm making the sea sound as though it were breathing.

'Beautiful, isn't it?' A kind-faced woman stood beside Hailey, wearing a white Grecian dress. 'I'm Madam Grayson. I'll be your overseer until you graduate. You're Hailey Woods?'

Hailey tensed, thinking Madam Grayson knew who she was, but relaxed when she realised the teacher's eyes were on a piece of parchment covered in names and arrival times. 'Yes, that's me.'

Madam Grayson ticked her name off. 'I need your travelling necklace.' Hailey pulled off the winged pendant and handed it over. 'Not everyone has arrived yet, so please wait with the other first years until they do.' She pointed to an apprehensive group of students standing twenty feet away.

But Hailey's eyes weren't on them. She focused instead on the island, which was a tropical beach formed of white sand that appeared as fine as dust and soft as powdered sugar. Students lounged beneath palm trees, and several other teachers dressed in Grecian outfits waited at varying points around the island, ticking off names as students materialised before them.

'It's not a good idea to keep standing there, unless you want to get squished.'

Hailey turned back to Madam Grayson. 'Sorry. I'll join the others.' She gripped her suitcase's handle and moved out of the way as a boy, who looked ready to throw up, appeared in the spot she'd been standing.

She continued towards the group of students she'd be spending the next five years with. Only a few of them appeared to know each other, talking in hushed voices while those around them either shuffled their feet or fidgeted with their bags.

'Hailey, you're here.' Demi broke free of the crowd and yanked Hailey into a quick hug.

'Where's Jayden?'

Demi waved a hand. 'Talking to some randoms. I don't know any of these people. I think we're the only ones from our school.'

Hailey glanced back at the crowd, studying the students' faces. No one looked familiar. A lightness spread through her, making her smile. If she didn't recognise anyone, then that meant no one knew she was a Zeus. She was officially a nobody. _Blue skies._ 'I think you're right about us being the only ones from our school.'

'We must be even awesomer than I thought.'

'What have I told you about modesty, Demi?' Jayden tsked, appearing from the crowd. 'Hey, Hails.'

'I can't believe this is really happening.' Demi bounced from foot to foot. 'We're going to Poseidon's Academy. Poseidon's Academy! And we'll probably get to meet sea-nymphs!'

'Maybe you should tone it down a little so people don't think you're crazy--well, at least not just yet.' Jayden grinned. 'And they like to be called nereids--not sea-nymphs.'

Hailey, too, could barely believe she was about to enter Poseidon's Academy and see Poseidon's palace. The gods' kingdoms and hideouts were coveted places that many archaeologists and historians had spent their lives searching for unsuccessfully. Poseidon's palace was one of the main places searched for, and there hadn't been a single sighting of it since the gods' demise. Its lack of appearance had led people to think Poseidon had destroyed it before he'd died to ensure no human ever set foot in his home.

But it turned out the nereids who lived there were just really good at hiding it. And five years ago, they'd announced they'd converted the palace into a high school and were accepting applications.

'Listen up, first years,' Madam Grayson said, positioning herself at the front of the group.

'Move.'

A shoulder slammed into Hailey, making her stumble a step, as a girl with blonde curls bashed her way to the front.

Madam Grayson appeared not to notice the disturbance, continuing to speak. 'Master Anderson should be opening the portal to the Academy any second now.'

_Portal?_ There hadn't been any mention of passing through a portal to get to the palace in Hailey's acceptance letter; she'd assumed it would rise from the water.

'Look.' Demi pointed to a burly man striding towards the sea. Hailey guessed he was Master Anderson.

Master Anderson stopped at the water's edge. A blue orb the size of a coconut shone in his hand. He pitched it into the sea, where it made a tiny _plop_ before sinking.

Hailey wasn't sure what to expect. Maybe the orb was some type of bomb that would explode and signal the palace to pick them up.

But there was no explosion--not even a ripple.

Demi sighed. 'How _very_ anti-climactic.'

Hailey was about to agree but was distracted by Master Anderson calling out several unfamiliar words. She picked up the last one as sounding something like _ennat_.

That's when everything broke into chaos.

A _CRACK_ shattered the air, its intensity shaking the ground and reverberating through Hailey's body.

The water began churning, spinning around as if someone had pulled a plug from the bottom of the sea.

_It 's a whirlpool!_

Hailey didn't know what to say or do. All she could think was that something had gone terribly wrong, because why would anyone create something so dangerous.

The whirlpool dragged Master Anderson into it; he didn't even get a chance to shout out for help before he vanished.

Hailey choked on a breath. Had she just seen someone die?

'Calm down,' Madam Grayson called out after several first years screamed. 'This is the portal to Poseidon's Academy. Master Anderson is safe on the other side. Watch the older students go, and you'll see there's nothing to worry about.'

'Wow!' Demi exclaimed.

'Cool!' Jayden beamed.

Hailey didn't want to watch anyone else get swallowed, but the pull of the whirlpool was like a sea-monster attack: she couldn't look away.

The second, third, fourth, and fifth years divided into groups. Each group followed Master Anderson's example, jumping into the swirling sea. Hailey kept waiting for her body to relax and be okay with the fact she'd have to do the same, but her body only tensed more with every group of students she watched disappear.

It was incomprehensible to her how diving into a whirlpool to get to the Academy hadn't made it into the rumours about the school. It would be the first thing she told her mum _if_ she lived through this.

'Okay, our turn,' Madam Grayson announced, after the other teachers followed the last of the older students into the whirlpool. 'It's tradition for the first years to jump in alone rather than in groups, so please form a line.'

'Let's get there first,' Demi said, grabbing Hailey and Jayden's hands.

Every instinct in Hailey's body screamed at her to get as far away from the sea as possible. But she let Demi drag her towards it, reminding herself with every shaking step that this was the only way to Poseidon's Academy. The only way to her being free of her powers.

'When you get to the Academy, please wait for me in the grounds,' Madam Grayson instructed. 'All right, off you go.'

Demi was first. She pivoted around to face Hailey and Jayden, blowing them a kiss. 'See you on the other side.' She leapt backwards, vanishing into the churning water.

Hailey gulped; it was her go. She inched forward a few steps and froze, her breath hitching as she peered at the raging water, imagining it sucking her up and throwing her around like a ragdoll while it gleefully drowned her.

_Calm down_ , she told herself, and instinctively raised her eyes to the sky. Its azure blue shade steadied her breathing.

Keeping her eyes on the sky, Hailey gripped her suitcase, took a deep breath, and stepped forward.

Nothing happened.

She went to take another step just as an invisible force yanked her into the sea. A wall of water replaced the sky, spinning around Hailey like a tornado. It didn't touch her though. Aside from the sea-spray misting her face, she was dry. She dared to take a breath, her muscles un-tensing when salty air flooded her lungs.

Gingerly, Hailey reached out her free hand and trailed her fingers through the swirling water, shivering at its coolness. 'Incredible,' she said, right before the water disappeared and she began falling.

**3**

**Poseidon 's Academy**

Hailey's feet hit solid ground, and the same salty scent that had hung on her acceptance letter swarmed her nostrils.

'Welcome to Poseidon's Academy.' Master Anderson stood before her, wearing gold shorts and a white polo shirt, and holding a crystal orb--the same one he'd thrown into the sea to create the whirlpool. Hailey wondered how something so small could contain a portal so powerful, and then she looked up, finding the whirlpool spinning two feet above her, ready to drop the next student.

A hand latched around her wrist and jerked her aside. 'You're looking the wrong way,' Demi told her.

Hailey followed her best friend's gaze and gasped when she saw Poseidon's Academy.

The palace looked as if it belonged in a fairy tale set in an ice kingdom. Its blue crystal exterior sparkled with the colours of a rainbow as invisible rays of light glinted off its turrets and spires, which rose towards the sapphire blue sea.

The enormous grounds that encircled it were even more enchanting. Sea-anemones and coral formed bright gardens of pinks, purples, blues, and greens. Between them grew trees with coral trunks. One type sprouted big bunches of pearls. Another lot resembled cherry blossom trees, but instead of pink flowers, each tree bloomed a different type of jewel: there were tanzanite trees, aquamarine trees, turquoise trees--basically jewel trees every colour of the sea. There were also trees that looked like weeping willows, with seaweed draping from their branches.

Hailey stared down at the transparent ground, where rainbow reefs grew beneath her feet. Her eyes widened as a school of fish swam by, their tails long like veils, and their scales shiny and iridescent like opals.

Her gaze drifted to the sea surrounding the grounds, which stretched over the top of the palace like a dome of water. She wondered what was keeping it from flooding in on them like a tsunami. _Perhaps a spell cast by the goddess Hecate herself_ , she mused.

'This place is amazing.' Jayden gaped, coming to Hailey's side.

'It's unbelievable,' Hailey agreed, drinking in every inch.

She'd only expected a palace. She'd never thought there'd be grounds surrounding it, or that those grounds would have magical trees growing topaz and lapis lazuli.

'I'm going to be rich,' Demi declared, stuffing emeralds the same colour as her eyes into her skirt's pockets.

'Demi, no stealing,' Jayden chided her.

'I'm not stealing. They're lying on the ground. And there's about fifty trees here. I don't think anyone will miss a few jewels.'

'Demi, put them back.'

'But--'

'Look, I don't know what the rules are here,' Jayden said, 'but stealing jewels could equal expulsion.'

Demi's eyes widened, and she emptied her pockets so quickly, Hailey thought she'd gained the power of super speed.

About twenty minutes passed before Madam Grayson dropped from the portal. She flicked her long black plait behind her shoulder. 'You can close it now, Rowan.'

Master Anderson raised the orb and said, ' _Zdaoknav svdaeat_.' **** The whirlpool descended like a tornado, pouring into the orb, where it swirled inside the blue crystal, raging to be set free again.

Madam Grayson moved to the front of the group, the transparent ground making it look as though she were walking on water. 'Now that we're all here, let's begin the tour,' she said. 'Hephaestus created the palace, and the diamond ground. He also designed the invisible force field that keeps the sea from flooding in. Poseidon, with the help of Demeter, created the plant life. And it should go without saying that it's forbidden to pick or take the jewels and pearls.' Demi sighed along with several other students. 'To reduce the chances of humans discovering the palace, Poseidon and Hephaestus created the grounds to travel constantly through the sea,' Madam Grayson continued. 'In other words, the palace is always moving, but it's gradual enough that you won't feel it. Let's head inside.'

'We get to see inside the palace!' Demi squealed, linking arms with Hailey and Jayden and flitting towards the palace's mother-of-pearl double doors.

Hailey held her breath in anticipation as she passed into the entryway, hoping the inside was just as magical as the outside.

Thousands--maybe even millions--of white pearls formed the floor, and shells and jewels adorned the frosted crystal walls. On either side of the room, a crystal staircase curved its way upstairs. And in the centre of the open space stood a glass statue of Poseidon raising his trident, ready for battle. Hailey imagined him charging down the stairs, eager to climb into his chariot so he could soar through the infinite sea.

'You can leave your suitcases here. Someone will bring them up later,' Madam Grayson instructed the first years.

Demi looped her arms back through Hailey and Jayden's once they'd added their suitcases to the giant pile. 'Come on, I wanna be the first one to see our common room.'

They ascended the right staircase, trailing behind Madam Grayson, who led them up three flights of stairs. 'Your common room is up here,' she announced, stepping onto an off-shoot staircase.

Puffing, Hailey followed her overseer up the ten steps to the common room, which was enormous and broken into two sections. The half on her left resembled a study area. Scallop-shell chairs surrounded dozens of desks, waiting for students eager to gain knowledge from the hundreds of books that crowded the coral bookcase against the back wall.

The other half of the room was its opposite. An ornate fireplace engraved with sea-monsters and nereids rested against one wall. Driftwood was piled high inside it, tingeing the flickering flames blue and making the common room smell faintly of burning wood. Sofas, armchairs, and floor cushions were scattered around the rest of the space.

Madam Grayson waited patiently for all the first years to file in before she pointed to a door in the centre wall. 'That door leads to the fourth years' common room--they use a separate staircase--only go in there if specifically asked by one of them. The boys' dormitories are through there.' She pointed to the door on the far left. 'And the girls' dormitories are through there.' She pointed to the door on the far right--just past the fireplace. 'Names are written on the doors, so find your name, and you'll have found your dormitory.'

Demi grabbed Hailey's hand and galloped towards the door leading to the girls' dorms. She flung it open, revealing a long hallway lined with about twenty-five doors.

Hailey stared down the hallway, suddenly feeling very sick as she realised she'd probably have to share a room with a stranger. What if she didn't get along with her dorm mate? What if it turned out to be the girl who'd shoved her on Poseidon's Island? Would Madam Grayson let her switch dorms? Or would she be stuck with a harpy for five years?

Demi didn't appear fazed by the prospect of having a stranger for a dorm mate. She was already a quarter of the way down the hall, running from side to side scanning doors. As more girls poured in, Hailey decided she'd better get started.

She took a breath and turned to the first door on her left; it contained a single name etched in gold calligraphy: _Guinevere Grayson_. It took her a moment to realise this was Madam Grayson's dorm.

'Hailey, it's here. We're together!' Demi shouted.

Hailey gazed down the hall, seeing nothing but a sea of girls. She pushed her way through the horde, trying to find where her friend's voice had come from.

'In here, Hails.'

Hailey spun to her left. Demi motioned at her from inside one of the dormitories, inviting her to come in. 'It's so cool,' she chimed. 'And we're roomies.'

Hailey glanced at the door to make sure Demi hadn't made a mistake. Two names were etched in gold: _Demi Evans_ and _Hailey Woods_. Hailey traced a finger over the calligraphy, a smile pulling at her lips. It appeared the Tyches of the world had blessed her with good luck today.

Like the common room, the dormitory had two halves, but unlike the common room, they were split lengthways and mirrored each other. A white polished coral desk rested against opposite walls, their bare surfaces and shelves waiting to be cluttered by textbooks and neglected homework. Each desk had a matching scallop-shell chair with coral legs. A few feet from the desks stood mother-of-pearl chests of drawers with seashell-encrusted mirrors hanging above them. And against the centre wall sat two double beds with iridescent blue duvet covers, and sea-silk canopies draping from the ceiling. Beside each one a giant clamshell floated.

Hailey approached one of the floating shells, which opened to reveal a glass and jug of water. 'It's a nightstand.'

'I claim this bed.' Demi collapsed onto the bed closest to the door.

'Works for me.' Hailey leapt onto the bed beside her, sighing in content as the sea-sponge mattress moulded around her body.

A door Hailey hadn't noticed in the wall across from the beds flung open. The two girls standing on the other side of it looked just as surprised to see Hailey and Demi as they were to see them.

One of the girls had honey blonde hair streaked with red. 'Sorry,' Blondie said, her words tinged with an accent. 'We thought this door might lead to a bathroom.'

'That's okay.' Hailey hopped off the bed and walked up to the two girls. 'I'm Hailey, and--'

Demi bounded to her side. 'I'm Demi.'

'I'm Kora, and this is Tahlia.' Blondie pointed a thumb at the other girl, whose long ebony hair was gleaming like satin under the crystal orb of light floating beneath the dorm's ceiling.

'Are you from Australia?' Hailey asked, taking a guess at Kora's accent.

'Yep.'

'You must be happy about escaping from the fire-breathing kangaroos,' Demi said. 'I heard they kill like one in fifty people.'

Kora and Tahlia burst out laughing, even Hailey cracked a grin.

Demi frowned. 'What's so funny?'

'I think you over exaggerated how many people kangaroos kill,' Hailey said.

'Just a little.' Tahlia smirked, her crystal blue eyes filled with amusement. 'It's more like one in fifty-thousand people--and they generally only get a little singed, rather than die.'

'Oh. Well, that's not as interesting,' Demi said. 'So, what are your powers?'

'I'm an Asclepius,' Kora answered. 'So, if you're nice to me, I'll heal any cuts and bruises you get.'

'I'm a Hypnos,' Tahlia told them. 'I can cure insomnia like that.' She clicked her fingers with a _snap_. 'What about your powers?'

Hailey tensed. There it was: the question she'd feared ever since she'd first been asked it in primary school. Demi saved her from answering right away, proudly proclaiming, 'I'm a Demeter. There's not a dying plant I can't save.'

Both Kora and Tahlia's eyes settled on Hailey, who was biting her lip, trying to think of ways to avoid the question, because she wasn't ready to relinquish being a nobody. She considered lying and telling them she was something ordinary, like a Hera, but she doubted Demi would let her get away with it. And even if she did, Kora and Tahlia would eventually discover the truth--lying would just delay the inevitable. And they were only two people. She could handle their reaction.

'I'm a Zeus,' Hailey confessed and automatically took a step back.

Kora and Tahlia's jaws dropped.

Demi clapped her hands together. 'I love it when you tell people.'

Kora, looking as if she'd just found out she had a second power, was the first to speak. 'There's one Zeus in the whole world and her dorm is next to mine. So, what can you do? Create monsoons? Blizzards? Hurricanes? What about fireball lightning? That's a thing, right? Can I see your powers? Please.'

'I need the sky,' Hailey said, grateful for the sea above them.

'Oh, right.' Kora's face fell.

'If you're a Zeus, why are you here?' Tahlia asked.

'Because coming to Poseidon's Academy is worth giving up my powers for,' Hailey told the lie she always did when anyone asked her that question. No one knew the real reason--not even her mum. As Zeus's powers were the rarest, they were also the most coveted, so Hailey figured no one would understand why she didn't want them.

Kora twirled a strand of blonde hair. 'I'd sacrifice my powers to get here too.'

'Please don't tell anyone I'm a Zeus.'

Tahlia cocked an eyebrow. 'Why?'

'Because I don't want to be swarmed with questions on my first day.'

Kora's cheeks turned pink. 'Sorry about that. I promise I won't tell anyone.'

'Me too,' Tahlia agreed. Her eyes flicked to the window to the right of Hailey's desk. 'You have a window as well.' She drifted towards it. 'And it looks into the back of the grounds, just like ours. Don't you think that's weird?'

Hailey walked over and stared out the window. She could see the glistening sea above the palace and the grounds with its glittering jewel trees. There was nothing strange about it as far as she could tell.

Demi scratched her head. 'What's weird about it? It's a window. It's supposed to look outside.'

Tahlia tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. 'Yes, but our dorms aren't at the back of the palace. Madam Grayson said the fourth years live on the other side of our common room, which means this window should be looking into their dormitories.'

'Huh.' Hailey frowned, she'd never even thought about that. 'How's that possible?'

'Magic.'

Hailey looked at Kora, who was leaning against Hailey's coral desk. 'Magic?'

'A Hecate probably spelled it to look into the back of the grounds,' Kora explained. 'This palace would be pretty boring if there weren't windows to look out of.'

Demi reached a hand through the window's open crystal doors. 'Wow. It's real, not an illusion. That's so cool.'

'All first years report back to the common room,' Madam Grayson called from the hallway.

Demi's face lit up. 'The tour's back on.' She ran to the door, yanking it open and vanishing into the hallway.

'Is she always like this?' Tahlia asked.

'Only when she's excited--so yeah, pretty much.'

'Well, I like her,' Kora said, heading towards the door with Hailey and Tahlia.

They caught up to Demi in the common room, where the atmosphere had drastically changed. The first years no longer stood in silence; most of them were busy chatting to someone--their new dorm mate if Hailey had to guess.

Madam Grayson called for silence. 'Thank you,' she said when the common room fell quiet. 'On the first day of the year, a dinner is thrown to welcome students back, so let's head to the main hall.'

**4**

**Exciting News**

Madam Grayson led the first years back to the entryway, where she ushered them through a wide archway between the two staircases. The room they entered was longer than it was wide, stretching the length of two Olympic-size swimming pools. Over fifty mother-of-pearl tables filled the vast space, each one bordered by ten scallop-shell chairs. Gold plates, goblets, and cutlery covered each table, glittering under the light cast by the big shining orbs floating beneath the ceiling.

'This is the main hall.' Madam Grayson attempted to speak over the other students' echoing chatter. 'Find a seat, and when dinner is over head back to the common room.'

'There's some free tables over there,' Demi said before vanishing into the crowd.

Hailey followed after her, weaving between furniture and students towards the front of the hall, where she dropped down at a vacant table with her best friend. A table twice as long as theirs stretched fifteen feet in front of them. Teachers sat behind it, scanning the hall, alert for any signs of trouble.

'Jayden, we're here.' Demi waved at Jayden, who was moving towards the other empty tables with the rest of the first years.

'I was afraid I'd never see you again,' Jayden said, plunking himself down next to Demi.

'Who are your friends?' Demi asked, staring curiously at the two boys who sat down beside him.

'This is Alec.' Jayden gestured to the lanky boy with blond hair on his right, who shyly met their gazes before lowering his eyes to the table and feigning interest in its shell border. 'And this is Aaron.' He gestured to the other boy, who had tousled brown hair and thick arms that you could only get from lifting weights--or being a Heracles. He smiled at them. 'Alec, Aaron, this is Hailey and Demi.'

'Nice to meet you,' Hailey said. 'Are one of you Jayden's dorm mate?'

'Nah, we're roomies.' Aaron nudged his head at Alec, who was busy polishing a shell with his finger. 'But our dorm is next to Jayden's, and he came in to say hi.'

'Who's your dorm mate then?' Demi asked Jayden.

Jayden flashed a grin that said he was about to make Demi very jealous. 'Actually, I've got a dorm all to myself.'

'Well, I think having your best friend as your dorm mate is better than being on your own,' Demi argued, Hailey tuning her and Jayden's argument out as she turned her attention to the rest of the hall.

She noticed some of the older students staring at the ceiling or at their laps. _Why do they look so nervous? Shouldn 't they be the confident ones? _But the really strange thing was the dirty glances those students were receiving from other people, who pointed at them as they whispered to their friends. It was like--

'Welcome everyone.' A woman no older than thirty stood before the teachers' table. She had flawless skin and curtains of platinum blonde hair that draped over her pale blue flowing dress.

Hailey's jaw dropped. The woman was a nereid. An actual sea-nymph, who was standing so close Hailey could have reached out and touched her.

The nereid waited for silence, her dress seeming to shimmer like the iridescent scales of a fish when she moved. 'I would like to welcome the older students back, and to the new students, I'm Amathia. I look forward to becoming acquainted with each of you.' Amathia's turquoise-coloured eyes fell on Hailey briefly before shifting elsewhere. 'Being the beginning of the year, I will uphold tradition and recount the creation of Poseidon's Academy before revealing some exciting news... After the gods' demise, I continued to reside here with six of my sisters. As the centuries passed, I found the palace too large for us and proposed the idea of converting it into a school, where students could learn the true accounts of history and how to harness their powers.'

Hailey's eyes widened; Amathia had been alive when the gods ruled. She'd heard nymphs could live a long time, but over 1600 years was a _really_ long time.

'My sisters, however, rejected my plans,' Amathia continued, briefly touching the blue glass teardrop that hung from a chain around her neck. 'I wearied of attempting to persuade them a school was a worthy idea five years ago and opened Poseidon's Academy without their consent. And here we are today.'

The students clapped and cheered. Hailey wondered what had happened to the other nereids after Amathia had gone behind their backs. _Probably moved out._

'Now for my exciting news,' Amathia said when the applause died. 'Poseidon's Academy was meant to be open to _all_ students. By this I mean I not only wished to teach those possessing god powers, but also those possessing unique powers--I believe you refer to them as Others.'

_Others?_ Hailey frowned. Others were humans the gods' powers had mutated in, creating powers never before seen. They'd been treated as outcasts since the first one emerged almost four centuries ago, forced to go to separate schools to those with god powers.

'After numerous enquiries to the School Board, they have finally agreed to allow Others--which I will now refer to as Uniques--to attend here on a trial basis for the year.'

The reaction that followed was varied. Some students shouted in outrage, others gaped, and some gazed around curiously, trying to spot the new additions to the Academy. It wasn't hard to see who the Others were; they were the ones slumping down in their chairs, attempting to hide from the students' glares.

Hailey had always envied Others a little, because being one meant you didn't share powers with a god, so there were no expectations. For the same reason, she also found them intriguing and had always wanted to meet one so she could see what unique powers they had. She wondered what the ones here could do. _Control electricity? Suck the oxygen from the room? Climb_ _up walls?_

Amathia raised her voice above the students' cries of protest. 'I expect you to make the new students feel welcome. I would also like to introduce a new teacher, who has kindly volunteered her services to us from one of the Uniques' schools. Please welcome Madam Norwood.' Amathia extended her hand to the teachers' table behind her, where a middle-aged woman rose to her feet. She smiled tightly as the teachers and a few students--including Hailey and her friends--clapped.

Madam Norwood sat down once the languid applause died. Amathia spoke again. 'Now that the exciting news is over with, I will remind you that you are prohibited from speaking or approaching my sisters.' Her eyes hardened as she said this, but a second later she smiled again. 'Let us eat.'

Hailey turned back to her friends, eager to discuss Amathia's news. Demi and Jayden were staring at Alec, who was gazing at the table like his life depended on it, and Aaron, who was so tense the veins in his neck were popping out.

Hailey felt like an idiot for not working out who they were sooner. 'You're Others--I mean Uniques--aren't you?' she asked, making a mental note never to use the word "Other" again.

'Yes, we are,' Aaron replied defensively.

'Awesome.' Jayden patted him on the back, acting as if Aaron had told them he could conjure a rainfall of coins.

'Wow.' Demi gaped. 'I've always wanted to meet an Other.'

Aaron raised an eyebrow. 'You're okay with us being Others?'

'Yeah,' Hailey said. 'You're more interesting than anyone with god powers.'

Alec finally looked up. 'Really?'

Hailey nodded along with Demi and Jayden, then found herself asking the question she avoided. 'Do you mind telling us what your powers are?' She knew it would lead to them asking her the same thing, but she was too curious about theirs to care.

Aaron grinned with the same proudness Demi did whenever she revealed her powers. 'I can create a force field.'

'I can walk through walls,' Alec said.

'Jeez, and all I can do is control water.'

'You're a Poseidon then?' Alec asked Jayden.

Jayden nodded, leaning back in his chair. 'Yep, so I should feel right at home here.'

'I'm a Demeter,' Demi informed them, her proud smile returning.

Aaron's gaze shifted to Hailey. 'And you?'

Hailey felt like she owed Alec and Aaron an honest answer, since they'd shared their powers with her. She leaned forward so no one at the surrounding tables could hear, and whispered, 'I'm a Zeus.'

Alec's eyes widened, but he didn't say anything. Aaron, however, smirked as he said, 'I guess that makes you an outcast like us, being the only one of your kind and all.'

Hailey smiled back, never thinking of it like that before. 'I guess it does.'

Jayden tapped his hands on the table. 'I'm starving. Where's the food?'

A mixture of smells that included honey-glazed ham, garlic bread, and coconut rice had Hailey glancing around. She expected to see servers making the rounds. But all she saw were students gobbling down food and no sign of where they'd gotten it from.

'Hey, why are we the only ones with empty plates?' Demi flicked the empty gold plate in front of her.

Hailey caught a glimpse of Madam Grayson sitting at the teachers' table. She met Hailey's gaze and mouthed _watch_ as she placed her hands on her plate and closed her eyes. The plate was empty one second, and the next a green salad peppered with roast pumpkin and feta appeared.

Hailey blinked. _Did a salad just appear out of thin air?_

She'd heard of conjurers, but not of plates that conjured food. Of course, she'd never heard of whirlpools acting as portals or trees growing jewels before either.

Copying Madam Grayson's example, Hailey touched the rim of her gold plate and closed her eyes. The first thing that popped into her head was the chocolate-chip pancakes her mum had cooked for lunch.

The buttery smell of batter and the sweet scent of chocolate drifted up Hailey's nostrils. She opened her eyes to find a stack of steaming pancakes on her plate. 'The plates...' the words fell away when she saw her friends already wolfing down food.

'Conjure food,' Demi finished for her. 'We know,' she said, biting into a brownie, having skipped to dessert.

'Alec worked it out,' Jayden told her, picking up a slice of margherita pizza, a string of cheese oozing over his fingers. 'He's really smart.'

'I only know because my dad's an archaeologist, and he's come across plates like this before.'

'Really? How do they work?' Hailey asked, curious to know how food could just appear out of thin air.

Alec pushed around a roast potato on his plate, appearing too nervous to eat. 'All I know is that Hephaestus created them.'

'That makes sense,' Hailey said, cutting into her pancake stake. Anything magical--like Poseidon's palace--could usually be linked to the god of fire and metalworking.

Tentatively, she skewered a piece of pancake with her fork and popped it into her mouth. She expected it to disappear or taste like cardboard. But it tasted like her mum's: overly sweet and gooey in the middle.

'So, what are your stories?' Demi asked Alec and Aaron, taking another bite of her brownie.

Aaron swallowed a mouthful of spaghetti. 'What do you mean?'

'You know, where are you from? How did you two meet?--I'm assuming you know each other, because you act like it. I need to know this stuff if we're going to be friends,' Demi said matter-of-factly.

Alec and Aaron exchanged a look, as if deciding whether Demi was being serious or not. 'Okay,' Aaron eventually said. 'We're both from the UK--Manchester, specifically. I moved there with my parents and sister when I was ten. I met Alec at Manchester's Primary School for Others. He was new, too, and we just kind of became friends.' Aaron twirled his fork, flecks of marinara sauce landing on the table. 'Did I pass? Can we be friends now?'

'I feel like I don't know you well enough yet,' Demi teased, using her spoon to scoop up the side serving of vanilla ice cream she'd conjured. 'Did you live somewhere before Manchester?'

'Lots of places,' Aaron said, shovelling more spaghetti onto his fork. 'But Alec's the one with the really interesting background. Go on, tell them where you're from.'

'I'm originally from Manchester,' Alec began in a reserved voice, still pushing around the roast potato on his plate. 'But because my dad's an archaeologist, he was always going on digs. My mum and I moved to wherever the dig was. I spent three years in Greece, two in Rome, and one in Egypt before we moved back to England.'

'You must have changed schools a lot,' Hailey said as she conjured a mint-chocolate milkshake in her goblet.

Alec shook his head. 'No. My mum and dad are Athenas, so they home-schooled me while we lived overseas. Manchester's Primary School was the first school I'd ever been to. We moved back because my parents thought I needed to be more social,' he added quietly, blushing.

'So, what about you three. What are your stories?' Aaron asked.

'We've been friends since grade one,' Demi said, licking chocolate sauce off her fingers before launching into a detailed history of their friendship. Hailey could tell from the glazed look in Aaron's eyes that he regretted the question almost immediately. Unfortunately for him and Alec, they had to endure Demi's babbling for another twenty minutes before the scraping of chairs against the pearl floor saved them.

'Looks like it's time to head back up,' Jayden said, watching the hall empty.

Demi leapt up. 'I can't wait to unpack.'

Madam Grayson patiently waited for all the first years to file back into the common room.

'I have to tell you about classes so listen up. You've been separated into six groups. You'll find your group number at the top of your timetable, which has been left in your dormitory--along with your suitcase. Classes start tomorrow at 8.30. And I'm sure I needn't remind you that any power misuse will result in wearing a neutralising bracelet.'

The threat was lost on Hailey, who suppressed a laugh. Neutralising bracelets blocked the wearer's powers. They'd originally been invented as a punishment for criminals, but were now used in schools as well.

'Later, boys,' Demi said after Madam Grayson dismissed them. 'Let's go, Hails.'

Hailey waved goodbye to Jayden, Alec, and Aaron before disappearing back to her dorm with Demi, where she found her blue polka-dot suitcase resting beside her bed with a green piece of paper perched on top.

She grabbed it, her grin widening with every subject she saw: Ancient History, Monsters and Creatures of the World, Creative Arts...

'Ugh, they teach Maths, Science, and English here too,' Demi moaned. 'And PE, that's even worse,' she proclaimed, dropping down on her bed with a huff.

'Physical Education isn't that bad, and there's plenty of other interesting subjects.'

Demi sighed, unconvinced.

'What group are you in?'

Demi peered down at her matching green timetable. 'Three.'

'Me too.'

That cheered her up. 'Thank the Tyches.'

Hailey placed her timetable on her nightstand, hoping the clamshell wouldn't eat it, and turned back to her suitcase, eager to clutter the room with her things. She unzipped her bag and gasped.

A painting of herself stared back at her. She stood on a shoreline, dark waves caressing her feet. Her eyes were her favourite shade: azure blue--the colour of a cloudless sky. She gazed up at the twinkling night sky, one arm raised towards a cloud that had parted to reveal a full moon. Its beam fell on Hailey's face, making her pale skin glow and her long auburn hair glimmer.

A sticky note clung to the bottom. _For when you miss the sky xx Mum_

So this was why her mum had banned her from the studio.

'It's beautiful,' Demi cooed, appearing at Hailey's side. 'Where are you putting it?'

Hailey lifted up the painting, which smelled like her mum's vanilla perfume. 'Um, I think above the desk.'

'Good idea.' Demi picked up the amber eyedropper bottle that Evonee had also snuck into Hailey's suitcase. Its label read _Anywhere Stick._ 'You hold and I'll stick,' she instructed Hailey, squeezing the eyedropper over the wood on the back of the canvas.

Hailey pressed the painting to the wall and stood back to admire her mother's masterpiece. Her new dorm felt homier already.

'I wish I had a cool painting of myself to stare at,' Demi remarked, strolling back to her own side as Hailey dug into her suitcase and pulled out her new stationary kit. Her mum had bought it yesterday so that Hailey wouldn't have an excuse not to write her every day--students weren't allowed to bring their mobile phones to the Academy, so it was back to writing good old fashioned letters. She sat at her coral desk and began writing, thanking her mum for the painting and telling her she'd arrived at the palace, which was amazing.

She never got to tell her mum why it was amazing, though, because at that moment, her hand started trembling.

'Hailey? What's wrong?' Demi, who had been busy stuffing drawers, rushed over.

'I don't know.' Hailey fought for control of her hand, which had put tiny ink dots all over her letter. 'It won't stop shaking.'

'I'll get Madam Gray--'

The pen slipped from between Hailey's fingers, her hand turning limp. 'No, it's okay.' Slowly, she raised her hand, rotating it to make sure she had control back. 'That was weird.'

Demi picked up the pen and studied it. 'Did your mum buy this from a joke shop?'

Hailey shook her head. 'No, it's a normal pen. It worked fine until I went to write about the palace...' _The palace the nereids want to keep a secret_. Things that hadn't made sense to Hailey earlier clicked into place. 'That's it. It was the palace.'

Demi frowned. 'What was the palace?'

'Didn't you find it weird you'd never heard about a whirlpool being the portal to Poseidon's Academy, or that jewel and pearl trees grow in the grounds? Aren't those the things you'd expect people to brag about?'

'Yeah, that is strange. But what does that have to do with your hand?'

Hailey grinned, pleased with herself for making the connection. 'Someone did something to the palace so that you can't tell anybody who hasn't been here about it. That's why my hand kept shaking until I dropped the pen.'

'So the palace can protect itself. I have to try.' Demi's hand shook the moment she touched Hailey's pen to paper. 'Cool.'

**5**

**Classes Begin**

The next morning, something that sounded like a horn tore Hailey from her dreams. She bolted up in bed, staring at the unfamiliar surroundings for a moment before remembering where she was and relaxing--at least until the horn blared again.

'Ugh,' Demi grumbled, pulling a pillow over her head. 'What's that horrible noise?'

The horn bellowed a third time. 'I'm guessing a conch shell.'

Demi tossed her pillow, sending it smacking against the wall. 'I have to wake up to _that_ every morning? It's worse than my alarm clock.'

'Come on, it's our first day of classes.'

That got Demi's attention. She flew out of bed and lunged for her uniform, which hung on the door next to Hailey's. She was dressed in seconds.

Demi tapped her foot impatiently at Hailey, who was pulling on her knee-high socks. 'Hurry up, Hails. We don't want to be late for our first day.'

'You're the one who didn't want to get out of bed,' Hailey pointed out, walking towards her uniform. She stepped into her midnight blue skirt, the hemline resting a few inches above her knees, and pulled on her button-down light blue shirt. Her striped midnight blue and gold tie went on next, which she got Demi to help her do up.

'You'll get the hang of it in no time, Hails,' Demi assured her, making a perfect knot. 'It only took my dad two lessons to make me an expert.'

The "d" word shot a jolt of pain through Hailey's chest, and she automatically grabbed the gold heart pendant hanging on a chain around her neck. Her name was engraved on it in her dad's elegant cursive. He'd been a Hephaestus, and had used his powers to make it for her on her eighth birthday. He'd died that same day.

'Your eyes are grey today,' Demi noted, holding out Hailey's midnight blue blazer, which had the Academy's emblem--a gold trident with the letters P and A encircled by a swirl of water--stitched onto the breast pocket.

Hailey shrugged on the blazer. 'Must be raining above the surface.' She slipped her feet into her black buckle-up shoes and stared into the mirror above her chest of drawers, a smile creeping across her face as she admired her new uniform. She was actually at Poseidon's Academy, about to start classes. This was the first day of her life for the next five years, which she imagined would be the best five years ever, because she'd be free from the burden of her powers, and she'd be living in an Olympian gods's palace--who knew what kind of magical things she'd come across in here.

'Let's go.' Demi flung open the door.

Hailey hesitated, suddenly remembering she'd told Alec, Aaron, Kora, and Tahlia about her powers. They'd promised they wouldn't tell anyone, but she didn't know them well enough to trust them yet. What if they'd blurted to everyone about her being a Zeus? By now all the first years could know, and even the older students.

'Hailey, why are you just standing there?' Demi asked from the hallway.

'I'm coming,' she said, slinging her book bag over her shoulder and edging into the hallway, expecting to be accosted by a horde of girls. Her shoulders relaxed slightly when not a single person looked her way.

'I can't wait for our first class,' Demi said, bounding down the hallway. 'And breakfast. We get to have whatever we want. I'm having waffles with ice cream,' she declared, throwing the door to the common room open.

Hailey tensed. A few dozen students lounged on the sofas and armchairs, chatting to their friends. A couple of them gazed up when the door clicked shut behind Hailey, but their eyes only lingered for a second. Hailey smiled. Her new friends had kept her secret. She knew she couldn't keep her powers hidden forever, especially when one of her classes was Powers. But for right now, she loved being ordinary.

After eating breakfast, Hailey, Demi, Jayden, Alec, and Aaron headed to their first class--by the luck of the Tyches, they were all in group three. They followed the map on the back of their timetables, venturing through the left arch in the entryway and making their way through a maze of hallways before they came to a mother-of-pearl door engraved with the words _Ancient History_. Hailey gazed at it with wonder, curious to know what awaited her on the other side. She imagined a museum crowded with ancient artefacts thought to have been lost after the Great Battle, like Poseidon's earth-trembling trident, and Hades's cap of--

The door swung open, revealing Amathia. She smiled at the first years. 'Good morning. Please come in and find a seat.' She glided from the door, her blue shimmering dress flowing behind her.

Hailey expected to see the museum she'd envisioned. Disappointment greeted her instead. The room was simply a classroom filled with coral desks and scallop-shell chairs. The only ancient-looking things were the yellowing pieces of parchment that lined the jewel and shell-decorated crystal walls. Each piece was different, with some containing detailed family trees that dated all the way back to the Protogenoi--the primordial gods who'd created the world--and others showing drawings of gods, such as Nemesis, and people, such as Perseus, with copious information scrawled beneath them.

Amathia stood before a long polished coral desk covered in stacked papers, books, and pens. The only other thing on it was a crystal orb that looked similar to the one Master Anderson had thrown into the sea, except it was twice as big and clear rather than blue.

'Come. There's no need to be frightened,' Amathia said warmly.

'Hurry up,' Demi prompted Hailey and the boys, leading them to the front row, which everyone else was avoiding, no doubt feeling a little intimidated by the 1600-year-old nymph standing at the front of the room.

Hailey dropped into a seat a few desks across from where Amathia stood. She supposed having the class taught by a nereid would make up for the lack of artefacts.

'Welcome to your first Ancient History lesson,' Amathia said when everyone was seated. 'Today's focus will be on how your ancestors inherited the gods' powers. I believe it more beneficial to show rather than tell, which is why I use a _watwdaom nnavv_.'

_A what?_ Hailey waited for Amathia to explain--and hopefully translate--what she was talking about. Instead, she pressed her fingers to the crystal orb on her desk.

White light enveloped the room, forcing Hailey to close her eyes against the brightness. When she opened them, she gasped. She wasn't in the Ancient History classroom anymore. She was standing on the rocky terrain of a cliff's ledge, staring at a battle raging a hundred feet beneath her.

Humans garbed in armour rode elephants and horses, and tens of thousands more acted as foot soldiers, brandishing swords, axes, and spears. The _clash_ and _clang_ of their weapons and their war cries reverberated off the encircling cliffs as they battled their enemy.

_The gods!_ Hailey gaped, watching them dispatch dozens of humans at a time with their powers. She wanted to scream and run away, but her legs wouldn't move. She was forced to watch as the Olympians, by far the most powerful gods on the battlefield, murdered her ancestors...

Zeus turned the sky black, commanding dozens of explosive lightning strikes that filled the plain with ear-splitting thunder and sent thick smoke curling into the air from the fires left in their stead. Poseidon drove his glowing trident into the ground, opening gaping rifts that swallowed everyone in their path. Ares mercilessly wielded his sword, slashing through human after human, leaving his hands and armour dripping with blood. Athena whirled her spear around, skewering anyone who came too close.

Apollo's hands glowed, sunlight bursting from his outstretched palms, blinding and scorching everyone within twenty feet. Artemis fired off arrows while commanding an army of ferocious beasts that used their pointed teeth and enormous talons to maim and kill their victims. Aphrodite bewitched males with pink mist she blew from her mouth, forcing them to turn on their allies. And Hera threw crackling white fireballs, incinerating the humans they collided with.

Demeter, Hermes, Hephaestus, and Hestia were the only Olympians Hailey couldn't spot among the chaos.

She'd read about the Great Battle between gods and humans when she was younger--even seen the movies--but the stories didn't come close to portraying the devastation and terror of the battle.

Corpses were piling up on the ground below, tainting the air with the sharp metallic scent of blood. If Hailey had had control of her body, she would have thrown up. But she remained trapped, watching the gods slaughter her ancestors, who fell by the hundreds.

And then things changed.

Screams pierced the air, and the gods collapsed one by one. _Deserves you right_ , Hailey thought, watching the gods squirm in pain as their immortality expired.

Hailey spun around, or more like her body did without her permission, to face a wall of rock. 'Odina,' she called in a voice that wasn't hers.

A hand the same grey shade as the rocks reached from the wall. Hailey clasped it with slender fingers--fingers that weren't hers. It wasn't her body, she realised.

_It 's Amathia's!_

Hailey didn't have time to dwell on the discovery. The hand yanked her towards the wall, and she braced for pain. But instead of smashing into the rock, she passed through it, her body overcome with airiness, like she was floating, for a split second before she emerged in another surrounding.

This time, rather than standing on a cliff's ledge watching a battle unfold beneath her, Hailey stood at the base of a cliff. The sea roared around her, its waves crashing against the rock she was balancing on, threatening to knock her onto one of the many jagged rocks encircling her.

But the danger of falling was lost on Hailey, who stared towards the land. In the distance, numerous fires burned. Thick acrid smoke rose from the angry flames, blackening the sky. The fires were too far away to see what was burning, but Hailey was pretty sure it was the gods' temples and shrines: the sacred places her ancestors had built so they could worship the gods.

The sky rumbled with an invisible storm, and shimmering gold sparks showered through the black smoke like glittering rain. Hailey wanted to reach a hand up and touch the falling sparks. But her body--Amathia's body--dove off the rock.

Everything flashed white, and Amathia's classroom reappeared. Hailey looked to make sure her friends were beside her. Each of them wore matching expressions of amazement and bewilderment, which told her they'd shared in her experience. She still had absolutely no idea what had happened though. How it was possible she'd travelled back in time to watch the Great Battle.

'Welcome back.' Amathia's voice drew Hailey's attention to the front, where she found an amused smile curving her teacher's lips. 'I do apologise for not explaining what a _watwdaom nnavv_ was before activating it, but as I said at the beginning of class, I prefer to show rather than tell,' Amathia said. ' _Watwdaom nnavv_ translates to memory ball.' Amathia extended a hand to the crystal orb on her desk. 'This is a memory ball. To make it work, you think of a memory and touch it. It will then mentally transport everyone in the room into that memory.'

Hailey nodded in understanding, realising she'd been in Amathia's body, unable to control it because it was Amathia's memory. Her initial expectations of Ancient History being taught in a museum seemed dull and boring now. She'd witnessed the Great Battle. Watched her ancestors defeat the gods. And seen the gods' powers rain from the sky. She was lost for words at how incredible that was. Yes, it had also been terrifying, but all she felt now was exhilaration at having travelled back in time, more or less.

'I understand that memory would have been very disturbing for most of you, but the _watwdaom nnavv_ dulls any distressing emotions once you've left the memory,' Amathia explained. 'Now it's time to assess your extent of knowledge,' Amathia said once the first years had had a chance to comprehend what had just happened. 'Who can tell me what battle was being fought and why?' Several students raised their hands. Amathia pointed to a girl with thick golden-brown hair. 'Please say your name before answering.'

'Kendra Adams.' The girl straightened in her seat. 'It was the Great Battle. It broke out when humans stopped worshipping the gods. The gods thought if they slaughtered enough humans they could intimidate the rest back into worshipping them. But our ancestors were smarter,' she added with a hint of a smile.

Amathia nodded. 'Very good, Kendra. The gods couldn't allow your ancestors to cease worshipping them, for Zeus had made a grave mistake centuries before. He had learned from his predecessors, the Titans, that being worshipped significantly increased a god's powers. For this reason, he created the human race. What he didn't realise was that the gods' bodies would become dependent on being worshipped, and without it they would fall into non-existence. The gods hid this weakness from humans, but one did learn of it. How he did is unknown. What we do know is that he used the knowledge to end the gods. Who can tell me the name of this crusader and how he triumphed?'

Alec raised his hand. 'I'm Alec Parker,' he said shyly. 'His name was Nikolai,' he continued, his voice turning confident as he answered the question. 'He secretly recruited a small number of followers, and they spent the next year travelling the lands, informing everyone they met of the gods' weakness and organising a mass rebellion. He knew that as soon as the gods found out about it, there'd be a battle. So, he informed the women and men unable to fight that when the battle broke out, they were to burn the gods' sacred places, as this would accelerate their deaths.'

'You know your history,' Amathia said with a look of approval that made Alec blush. 'By the time the gods discovered they had been fooled, it was too late. They retreated to Olympus, where they faded into oblivion. Their powers, however, remained intact and fell from the sky to your ancestors. And since then, they have been passed down through the generations. Of course, not all humans believe the gods to be dead,' Amathia went on. 'As I'm sure you all know, a prophecy was foretold after their demise...'

Hailey froze. _No. Please don 't say it. Please._

'...The prophecy says, "the gods will one day return to claim back their thrones. Only the one born with the powers of Zeus, who can shoot lightning from their hands, will be able to defeat them".'

Hailey sank down in her chair, focusing her eyes on her notebook, because one thing was always guaranteed whenever someone quoted the prophecy: people stared at her. She didn't understand why, because as far as she was concerned, the prophecy had nothing to do with her, since Hailey--like every Zeus before her--could not shoot lightning from her hands.

And even if she could and the gods did magically come back to life, it hardly seemed fair that she--a thirteen year old--should bear the sole responsibility of protecting the world from them.

'But many do not believe in this prophecy,' Amathia continued, 'arguing that if the gods were alive, they would have re-emerged by now. And also that their powers would never have been passed down in the first place.'

Hailey dared to look up, not being able to stand the building tension anymore. Her body un-tensed when she saw everyone scribbling down notes. Of course they weren't staring at her; they didn't know the truth--not yet anyway.

Hailey had changed into her sportswear--a light blue polo shirt and midnight blue shorts--and was standing in what was supposed to be the gym. There were no hoops, painted lines, or equipment. It was simply a large empty space with a sea-sponge floor. She would have thought she was in the wrong place, except that everyone in group three was there, too, looking as confused by their surroundings as her.

'How are we meant to play sports in an empty gym?' Jayden asked, scratching his head.

Demi crossed her arms with a huff. 'He'll probably make us run laps.'

Aaron clapped his hands together. 'Sounds like fun.'

'No, it doesn't,' Alec grumbled, looking as unhappy about being there as Demi.

Hailey wasn't the biggest fan of PE either, but she wasn't ready to join in Demi and Alec's sulking yet. She couldn't imagine a normal PE class being taught at Poseidon's Academy, where everything from the plates to the trees was outlandish and magical.

She imagined the empty gym transforming into something extraordinary--like a mini sea. Hailey scanned for drains in the walls that would allow water to flow into the room, as well as a few dolphins who would offer students a ride on their backs.

The gym's double doors swung open and Master Anderson, dressed in gold shorts and a white polo shirt again, marched in. 'Welcome to Physical Education. My name is Master Anderson, and I'll be your PE teacher for the next few years. You're probably wondering where the sports equipment is. Well, there isn't any, because we don't play ball games at Poseidon's Academy. Here, PE is about learning to defend yourselves against other people's powers--in other words, self-defence.' Master Anderson glanced at Jayden, who had raised his hand. 'Yes?'

_So much for swimming with dolphins_ , Hailey thought with a sigh.

'Isn't powers meant to teach us how to use our abilities in a defensive situation?'

'Yes, but in PE you won't be learning to use your powers in defence. You'll be learning to use physical prowess.'

'Why do we need to learn to defend ourselves without our powers?' Aaron asked.

Master Anderson smirked in a way that said he got asked that question a lot. 'Every power has a weakness, and if your opponent works out yours, you'll be helpless--unless you know how to fight back physically.'

The way Master Anderson was talking made it sound as if an attacker lurked around every corner. But Hailey had to admit his logic seemed smart, especially when she'd voluntarily repressed her powers. It'd be good for her to know how to fight back if someone decided to take advantage of that little fact.

'First PE lessons are always a shock, but I promise you'll learn to enjoy the classes,' Master Anderson said, noting the gaping mouths and dumbfounded looks on the first years' faces. 'Today we're going outside, so follow me.'

'I'm glad I've read a book on martial arts,' Alec remarked.

'I think I'm going to enjoy PE,' Demi said, her pout transforming into a smile.

Master Anderson led them to the back of the palace, where a bizarre bluish-green grass coated the ground. It felt soft and squishy beneath Hailey's shoes, like she was walking on spongy rubber.

'I want everyone paired up. Nominate someone to be the villain, meaning you can use your powers, and someone to be the hero, whose job is to subdue the villain _without_ using their powers,' Master Anderson instructed. 'Today I'll be assessing your defensive skills to see how much work is needed, so do your best and begin when ready.'

'Do you want to be the hero or the villain?' Demi asked Hailey.

Hailey's heart squeezed as she glanced up to find water instead of the sky. 'I can't use my powers, so I guess that makes me the hero.'

Demi rubbed her hands together. 'Sounds good to me.'

'Let's star--' Hailey's words fell away as a shadow swept over her, and a shower of pearls pelted her head. 'Ouch,' she yelped, diving free of the pearls while cursing herself for being stupid enough to stand near a tree when her opponent was a Demeter. She leapt back up and charged at her best friend.

Demi smirked and raised her hands.

The grass exploded up, growing as tall as the jewel trees, forcing Hailey to skid to a stop. She tried to peek through to see what Demi was up to on the other side, but it was too thick. With a shrug, she decided to take a chance and bolted forward.

The grass's squishy blades brushed against her skin, tickling her nose with the scent of salt, as she charged through the forest of aqua and smashed into Demi, tackling her to the ground.

'Ow,' Demi whined.

Hailey jumped up and grinned down at her opponent. 'I win.'

'Beginner's luck.' Demi climbed back to her feet. 'I demand a rematch.'

'You'll only lose again,' Hailey teased.

Demi poked out her tongue and got to work on shrinking the grass and pearl tree back to their normal sizes.

Hailey gazed around to see how the other first years were doing. She spotted Jayden, Alec, and Aaron--their class must've been an odd number--sparring with each other a few pairs over.

Jayden kicked his leg out to trip Alec, but it passed straight through him--it appeared Alec could do more than walk through walls. Jayden looked as surprised by this as Hailey. But he only faltered for a second, quickly jumping back into defensive mode and launching at Alec.

Aaron leapt in front of him with raised palms, and Jayden realised too late what was happening. He bounced off Aaron's invisible force field and landed with a thud, looking less than pleased. He swiped his hand at Alec and Aaron, who were too busy chuckling to notice the gesture, and a rogue wave roared through the grounds' force field, crashing over the two boys, silencing their laughter.

Hailey, however, was struggling to breathe she was laughing so hard. Self-defence wasn't as fun as she imagined swimming in a miniature sea would be, but, from the looks of things, it definitely wasn't going to be boring.

**6**

**Wednesday 's Timetable**

Hailey felt like she was marching towards a fireball squad the next morning as she headed down the stairs with her friends to Powers: the class where everyone would learn she was a Zeus.

Primary school had been the first place she'd had to tell a classroom about her powers. The other kids had only been six, but they'd known being a Zeus was a rarity as much as any thirteen year old. Her mind drifted back to what had happened during lunch break...

_Hailey stood eating a peanut butter sandwich by a vegetable garden --carrots, lettuce, and corn peeking from the composted soil--as she watched the other kids play on the playground, the squeak of swings and laughter filling the air. _

_Two girls marched up to Hailey from the playground._

_' Make the sky pink,' the one wearing pigtails demanded._

_' And the clouds purple,' the one wearing plaits ordered._

_Hailey gulped down her bite of sandwich. 'I... I don't know how.' _

_Pigtails shoved her, Hailey 's sandwich flying from her hand as she hit the pavement, her knees and hands stinging. 'Do it!'_

_' Or we'll use our Ares powers on you,' Plaits threatened, balling her hand into a fist. _

_Tears burned Hailey 's throat, but she swallowed them down and got back to her feet. She extended her hands towards the blue sky and wispy white clouds, a trickle of warmth leaking down to her fingertips as she imagined the sky changing to pink and the clouds to purple. _Pink sky. Purple clouds. Pink sky. Purple clouds, _she repeated in her head over and over, her hands shaking as she poured everything into giving the girls what they wanted, afraid they 'd break her bones if she failed._

_' Why isn't it pink?' Pigtails demanded, her hands on her hips._

_' The clouds are still boring white,' Plaits huffed. 'That's it.' She drew her leg back, and Hailey braced herself for pain._

_' Leave her alone!' another girl shouted as Pigtails yelped and smacked to the ground, weeds from the garden having wrapped around her ankles._

_' You're dead!' Plaits shouted at the girl, just as the tap next to the vegetable garden spurted to life, shooting a jet of water right into Plaits's face. She screamed, running away, her friend quickly chasing after her. _

_' Hope I didn't get any water on you,' a boy said, shutting the tap off with a swipe of his hand._

_' Thanks,' Hailey said to her rescuers, wiping at a tear leaking down her cheek. 'I'm Hailey.'_

_' I'm Demi,' the girl who'd controlled the weeds said. 'What's your name?' she asked the boy._

_He smiled. 'Jayden.'_

The memory churned her stomach. Hailey was pretty sure no one would push her over for not being able to turn the sky pink, but it reminded her how people could react when they found out she was a Zeus. _They can 't make me do anything_, she reminded herself. _How interesting can a Zeus be if they can 't use their powers?_

Hailey reached the second floor and trudged down the hallway their classroom was supposed to be in. She glanced at Alec and Aaron, instantly feeling guilty for being self-absorbed. Poor Alec looked so pale she thought he might vomit, while Aaron was clenching his fists, ready for a fight. 'Don't worry, once you show off your powers no one will care that you're Uniques,' Hailey said in an attempt to ease their nerves.

Alec shook his head, halting outside their Powers classroom. 'I don't know if walking through walls is enough.'

'Only one way to find out.' Demi looped her arms through Alec and Aaron's and escorted them into the classroom.

Jayden offered his arm to Hailey with a grin. 'Shall we?'

Hailey hesitated. Once she entered the room, things would change. She'd no longer be a nobody. But she'd known from the start that was unavoidable. _Goodbye anonymity_. 'Okay.' She linked arms with Jayden, letting him lead her into the classroom, where she froze.

Half of the room resembled a classroom, scattered with desks and chairs. The other half was empty space. But that wasn't what Hailey was stunned by. Her gaze was locked on to the thirty plus archways in the walls, each of which led into a separate room.

Through one archway, Hailey glimpsed three enormous tables crowded with labelled boxes. The few labels she could make out from the distance read _gold_ , _silver_ , _onyx_ , _moonstones_ , and _malachite_.

Another archway revealed a room with a sea-sponge floor, just like the gym. Scattered along the walls was about every weapon imaginable: swords, daggers, axes, staffs, bows, and even throwing stars.

'Over here,' Demi called, waving Hailey and Jayden towards the front row of desks on the classroom side.

Jayden sighed. 'I hate the front row.'

Hailey nudged him forward. 'Well, you better get used to it, because I have a feeling it's Demi's new favourite row.'

With another sigh, Jayden followed Hailey to the seats Demi had reserved for them.

'Quiet down, first years,' Madam Norwood snapped, entering the room. She paused in front of the class, surveying them with stern eyes before saying, 'My name is Madam Norwood. I am here to teach you how to control your powers. If you work hard in my class, your powers will grow to their full potential. But I warn you, if you do not take this class seriously, I will not waste my time helping you.' Madam Norwood picked up a clipboard from her desk. 'Everyone to the other side of the room.'

Reluctantly, Hailey stood up and joined the other first years, everyone crowding around the empty space between the archways.

'Before this class can begin, I need to know your powers,' Madam Norwood said. 'So please form a line.'

Demi sprinted to the front, clapping her hands together with glee when she secured her spot as the very first person in line. Meanwhile, Hailey trudged to the end of the line, hoping there wouldn't be enough time to get through the whole class, and she'd have an extra day of being Hailey Woods--instead of The Zeus.

It appeared Hailey's idea was a popular one though. She was quickly pushed up from the back of the line by a large group of students she assumed were Uniques, leaving her a lot closer to the front than she wanted to be.

'One at a time, you will step forward and tell me your name and power. You will then demonstrate it for me so I can assess what level you're at. Don't feel disheartened if someone with the same power as you is more advanced. Everyone's powers develop in their own time.' Madam Norwood picked up the reading glasses hanging from a chain around her neck and pushed them up the bridge of her nose. 'All right, let's begin.'

Demi bounced forward. 'My name's Demi Evans. I'm a Demeter.'

Madam Norwood jotted something down on her clipboard. 'You may move into the Demeter room to demonstrate your powers.'

Demi practically lunged through the archway Madam Norwood pointed to. It led into a rainforest, where the trees' moss-covered branches formed a canopy, offering the birds Hailey could hear chirping a place to hide. Ferns, bushes, and flowers grew at the trees' bases, their thickness almost concealing the dirt floor.

Demi flicked her hand at one of the ferns; its fronds shook, sprinkling spores over the ground, which morphed into full-grown ferns, densifying the forest even more.

'Very good, Demi,' Madam Norwood said. 'You may take your seat.'

Demi sashayed from the room, oozing pride, and headed back to her desk.

One by one the students ahead of Hailey demonstrated their powers for Madam Norwood before sitting back down, bringing Hailey closer and closer to the front. She reached for her necklace, her fingers gripping the heart pendant as she tried to push her nerves away. If her dad had been there, he would have told her being a Zeus was something to be proud of, because out of everyone in the world, she'd been gifted with the rarest power of all.

But he wasn't there.

He was dead.

'Next.'

Hailey gulped and edged forward. 'My name's Hailey Woods.'

'And your power?' Madam Norwood asked, peering at Hailey over her glasses.

_Unavoidable_ , she reminded herself. 'I'm a Zeus.'

The first years gasped as one and whispering quickly ensued. They were the usual remarks: 'She's like famous and she's in our year'... 'I wonder if she can shoot lightning'... 'She's not what I imagined--doesn't look like prophecy material to me'.

Hailey lowered her eyes and crossed her arms, wishing she had the power to dematerialise.

'Be quiet,' Madam Norwood chided, silencing the whispering. 'I will not tolerate talking in this class, especially when it's about another student.' Madam Norwood's face softened when she looked back at Hailey. 'As you can't demonstrate your powers, you may take your seat.'

Hailey stared at Madam Norwood. A teacher defending her was not something she was used to. _Does she have some kind of ulterior motive?_ Hailey wondered-- _like being nice to me now so she can try and manipulate me later?_ 'Thank you,' she finally said and returned to her desk, sinking down in her chair when she noticed most of the first years were watching her.

'Don't worry, Hails, your time as the centre of attention is about to end,' Jayden said.

'What makes you think that?'

He nodded his head towards the other side of the room. 'Because the Uniques are up next.'

Hailey glanced back to Madam Norwood, where nine nervous students, including Alec and Aaron, waited in front of her. Hailey forgot about the staring students and leaned forward, eager to see what powers the Uniques would have. Maybe she'd get lucky and one could turn her invisible.

She watched with wide eyes as the Uniques demonstrated their abilities. One student levitated into the air, touching the crystal ceiling before landing back on the ground. Another one swished his hand around the room, frost snaking along the walls and floor as the temperature dropped into the negatives. He swished his hand again, swarming the room with heat so intense Hailey thought she'd roast alive. By the time Alec slunk forward, the last in line, and showed off his powers by running through a wall, the entire class was applauding--except for a couple of glaring students.

'That ends class for today,' Madam Norwood announced. 'I expect you to read chapter one in _The Gods and Their Powers_ by our next class--there _will_ be questions,' she warned. Madam Norwood raised her eyes to the closed door. 'Open.' The giant pearl knob twisted, and the door swung in.

Hailey's stomach hardened. Madam Norwood's protection would expire once she left the classroom, giving the other students free range to accost her.

'Come on, Hailey. We need to get a good seat for Monsters and Creatures of the World,' Demi said, hopping up with the boys.

Hailey shoved her books into her bag and tensed the second she stepped into the hallway, expecting the first years to swarm her. But no one even glanced at her.

'Can you believe that one girl morphed a chair into a TV--a _TV_ ,' Hailey overheard someone telling their friend.

'Yeah, and then there was that guy who created a force field. How cool was that?'

A smile spread across Hailey's face. It appeared everyone was too busy talking about the Uniques' powers to even remember who she was.

'Why so happy?' Jayden asked as they pushed their way through the crowded hallway, searching for their next classroom, which was only meant to be a few doors down from Powers.

_Oh, just that no one cares I 'm a Zeus_. 'No reason. That looks like our classroom.' She pointed to the room Demi, Alec, and Aaron had disappeared into, distracting Jayden from asking any more questions.

Hailey's gaze locked on to the walls of her newest classroom, which were covered in drawings and photos of ferocious monsters like the hydra, its nine heads snarling to reveal venom-coated fangs, and docile creatures like the pegasus, which soared through the sky on its feathered wings.

'No!'

'What's wrong?' Hailey asked Demi.

'The first row's full.'

Jayden wrapped an arm around her shoulders. 'The second row will have to do,' he said, steering her towards it.

'It's not the same,' she huffed, slumping into a chair.

'We're still close enough to see everything,' Alec pointed out.

Aaron took the seat beside Jayden. 'And if it's like Ancient History, it won't matter where we sit.'

Demi straightened up. 'You're right.'

Hailey didn't share Demi's enthusiasm. Entering memories to see events in history was one thing--a very awesome thing--but entering memories to meet monsters was another thing. A shudder snaked down her spine at the thought of coming face to face with a Nemean lion.

She took her seat as Madam Grayson, who had her dark hair pulled into a long plait again, strolled into the room. She stopped in front of the teacher's desk and smiled warmly. 'Good morning, class, and welcome to Monsters and Creatures of the World. For those of you thinking this class will be like Ancient History where you learn by entering memories, I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you, as you'll mainly be learning from a textbook.'

Several students sighed, including Demi, leaning back in their chairs. Madam Grayson was unfazed by their lack of enthusiasm. 'But occasionally you'll learn by interacting with the creatures you read about, which is what you'll do today. So please pack up your things and follow me to the stable, where you'll meet Poseidon's horses.'

Relieved she didn't have to worry about running from a Nemean lion--or any other monster, for that matter--Hailey happily repacked her book bag and ambled into the hallway with everyone else.

'I don't see how horses will be interesting.' Demi pouted.

'Yeah, if I wanted to see a horse I could do that back on land,' Aaron agreed.

'They're not ordinary horses,' Alec told them. 'They're hippocampi.'

'Hippo--what?' Jayden frowned.

'Hippocampi,' Alec repeated as the class began descending the second-floor stairs. 'That's the plural pronunciation. Hippocampus is the singular.'

'You're still not making any sense.' Demi trudged down the stairs. 'Speak English.'

Alec rolled his eyes. 'They're sea-horses.'

That perked Demi, Jayden, and Aaron up. It raised Hailey's interest too. She wouldn't have minded seeing ordinary horses, but sea-horses sounded way more exciting. She didn't know much about them--aside from the fact they'd pulled Poseidon through the sea in his chariot.

'This way,' Madam Grayson said, ushering the first years through the left arch in the entryway and down to their Ancient History classroom, where they turned down another hallway that led to a set of double doors. 'We can't all go in at once,' Madam Grayson said, pausing outside the doors. 'You need to break into two groups.'

Hailey, Demi, Jayden, Alec, and Aaron joined with Kora, Tahlia, and Kendra, and, to Demi's delight, Madam Grayson made them group one.

'There are a few ground rules before you go in,' Madam Grayson told the class. 'Firstly, be quiet when you're inside, or you'll startle the horses. Secondly, you are not allowed to enter the stalls or let the horses out. But you may pat them.' She pushed open the doors.

The sharp smell of salt greeted Hailey when she wandered into the stable, where dried seaweed covered the floor like hay. There were twelve stalls carved from mother-of-pearl: four of them were empty, but the other eight each housed a horse.

Hailey steered towards a stall, seaweed crunching beneath her shoes, and gasped when she saw the sea-horse inside. She'd been expecting it to look like a normal horse with gills, but this horse looked magical, with its whole body covered in iridescent blue scales, and having a blue mane and tail.

'Wow,' Hailey said, reaching out to pat the horse's cheek, its scaly skin smooth under her hand.

'When the hippocampi enter the sea, their front legs transform into flippers, and their back legs into a tail,' Madam Grayson told the class. 'Once they dive underwater, their necks grow gills and they're able to filter oxygen through their bodies to their riders. They also have the ability to keep their riders dry.'

'Can we take them for a ride?' Demi asked.

'I'm afraid not. Only the nereids are allowed to ride the hippocampi.' Madam Grayson ignored Demi's sigh. 'You can have five more minute with the horses.'

'I wish I could have one of you as a pet,' Hailey told her horse, running a hand through its coarse blue mane. It whinnied in reply and clopped over to the polished coral trough at the back of its stall, which was filled with water. It climbed inside the trough and swished its head towards Hailey, spraying her with sea-water. 'Uck,' she said, wiping the salty water off her lips.

Kendra laughed from the stall beside her. 'She said she likes you.'

'Oh, that's right, you're an Artemis,' Hailey said, remembering Kendra telling Madam Norwood that in Powers. 'What were you two talking about?' She nudged her head towards the horse Kendra was petting.

'He asked me to take him for a ride.'

'It must be cool to know what animals are thinking,' she said, looking back at her horse, who was nibbling on some seaweed from the trough.

Kendra's horse licked her hand with a blue tongue. 'It's not an easy gift to have. I also feel their emotions.'

'Powers can probably help you block that stuff.'

Kendra shook her head. 'I could never do that. It would be like ignoring them. I only meant it can be hard sometimes. These horses--'

'Time's up, group one,' Madam Grayson announced.

Hailey's friends had just gone to bed, leaving Hailey lounging on a sofa in the common room, her legs curled up beside her while she worked on her homework. Someone pretended to clear their throat, making her glance up and scowl.

The blonde-haired girl who'd pushed her on the beach lingered before her. Hailey hated to admit it, but she was really pretty, with violet-coloured eyes, and hair that fell in perfect curls past her shoulders, reminding Hailey of Goldilocks.

Goldilocks extended her manicured hand. 'I'm Venus.'

Hailey was too surprised to move. Venus didn't strike her as the type to walk around introducing herself to everyone. _So why is she talking to me?_ She cautiously shook the other girl's hand. 'Hailey.'

'These are my best friends, Nerissa and Cleo.' Venus waved a hand at the two girls standing on either side of her. Everything about them matched, from their loose black curls to their deep blue eyes. They were twins, Hailey realised.

'Do you want something?'

Venus flicked a curl behind her shoulder. 'I thought we could be friends. I'm a _very_ powerful Aphrodite.' _That explains why she 's so beautiful_, Hailey thought--anyone with the goddess of love and beauty's powers was guaranteed to look like a supermodel. 'Nerissa and Cleo are sirens that, like me, can make any boy do what they want.' This remark brought proud smiles to the twins' red lips. 'I heard you're a Zeus, and I think those of us with the greatest powers should stick together. Wouldn't you agree?'

Hailey's jaw clenched. Of course Venus was only talking to her because she'd found out she was a Zeus. 'I don't base my friendships on powers. So, no, I don't want to join your gang.'

Venus blinked. 'Excuse me?'

'I said I don't want to be your friend,' she repeated, raising her voice loud enough to catch the attention of the other first years in the common room.

Venus's eyes turned venomous. 'You're refusing _me_? You're the one who has no powers down here.' She regarded Hailey with abhorrence, as if just looking at her made her sick. 'You're a pathetic excuse for a Zeus.'

Hailey flinched, tears burning her throat. _Do not let this harpy see you cry_. She took a deep breath, shoving her feelings down. 'That's your opinion,' she replied in an even tone.

Venus shrugged nonchalantly. 'Whatever. Your mistake.'

Hailey watched the three girls strut away, not feeling the least bit relieved when they disappeared into the girls' dormitories. Their confrontation served as a reminder that her plan for coming to Poseidon's Academy wasn't infallible. Even without her powers, there were still people who wanted to exploit her for them.

Although so far Venus had been the only one. But just because no one else had confronted her, didn't mean they weren't planning to. Instinctively, Hailey glanced at the other first years to see if anyone else would approach her, but everyone was busy doing their homework or chatting to their friends. She was safe, for now.

**7**

**Nemertes**

Something called to Hailey, forcing her down the stairs and into the entryway. But it wasn't a voice; it was a... pull, and it was drawing her outside, where the usual light that illuminated the grounds had been turned off to imitate night. The only light came from the coral and sea-anemones in the gardens, which glowed fluorescent pink, blue, green, and purple.

Hailey stopped a short distance from the force field. Someone stood in front of her, their eyes fixed on the sea, which was fluorescent blue. Hailey's fingertips tingled, alerting her to danger. She ignored her body's warning to run as the invisible force that had called her outside pushed her forward.

Hailey took a deep breath and stepped beside the motionless figure. She gazed at their face and gasped. 'Demi?'

Demi's eyes remained on the sea. 'Can you hear it?' she said in a vacant voice that blew chills down Hailey's spine.

Hailey listened to the silence around her. 'Hear what?'

'It's coming.'

Hailey studied the glowing sea, the tingling in her fingertips reaching a crescendo as tendrils of fear wrapped around her chest. She didn't want to find out what _it_ was. 'Let's go inside.'

Demi whirled around, eyes wide. 'It's here!'

A tentacle dotted with spikes whipped out of the sea and snaked around Hailey's leg. She screamed as the spikes dug into her flesh and the monster yanked, knocking her to the ground.

She clawed her fingers around a piece of glowing green coral, keeping the monster from wrenching her into the sea. 'HELP!' she yelled, her fingers starting to slip.

A tiny sliver of relief cut through her terror when Demi appeared in front of her. 'Grab my hand!' Hailey cried, hoping her best friend was strong enough to pull her free.

Demi stared at her. 'You should have heard it. It's too late now.'

The tentacle tightened around Hailey's leg, its spikes digging in deeper as the monster yanked again, tearing the coral from Hailey's grasp and dragging her into the water.

Hailey's eyes flew open, and she shot up in bed. A scream filled her, but she strangled it when she realised she was safe in her dorm. Her heart, however, continued to pound, pumping fresh terror through her body.

A glance at Demi's bed helped calm her. She was sound asleep under the covers, not slinking around the grounds with a monster lurking in the sea. _It was just a nightmare_ , she told herself, absentmindedly reaching for her heart pendant and freezing.

Her neck was bare.

'No, no, no, no, no.' Hailey leapt out of bed, tearing off the sea-silk sheets and duvet. But her necklace wasn't buried in them. She crouched down on her hands and knees to peer under her bed before searching the rest of the floor, and then finally throwing all the papers off her desk. 'It's not here.' She bit her lip, starting to hyperventilate. She needed her necklace. It was the last thing her dad had given her. She couldn't lose it!

_Where is it?_ She remembered back to yesterday afternoon when some of her hair had gotten caught in the necklace's clasp during her Ancient History class. That was the last time she remembered having it. _Maybe it fell off there_.

She glanced at the seashell and mother-of-pearl clock on the wall. It was 6am--the conch shell wouldn't sound for another hour, and Hailey couldn't wait that long. She needed her necklace back right now.

She didn't bother changing out of her pyjamas or putting shoes on. She raced straight past Demi, who'd managed to sleep through her ransacking the dorm, and into the hallway, moving through the deserted common room and down the stairs, keeping her eyes transfixed on the floor, hoping to spot her necklace.

What would happen if she couldn't find it? 'I'm going to find it!' she proclaimed aloud, continuing down the stairs. She didn't care what it took--she'd pay a Hecate to cast a locater spell if she had to.

Hailey reached the entryway and stiffened, half expecting the pull from her dream to possess her and force her outside so a sea-monster could eat her. _Stop being stupid_ , she told herself. She was thirteen--far too old to be scared of a little nightmare. She shoved away the image of the sea-monster and darted through the left archway.

She didn't want to stress about not finding her necklace anymore, so she distracted herself by thinking about her Ancient History class yesterday, where the memory ball had shown her the creation of the human races. Like her Ancient History classes from last week, Hailey had found Amathia's memories both fascinating and terrifying.

It had been incredible watching Zeus create the Silver Race--the second group of humans. It had been equally disturbing watching him and the other gods destroy them with a shower of fireballs for refusing to worship their makers.

From their destruction, Zeus had created the Bronze Race: a very violent race who had been more interested in killing each other than worshipping the gods. Hailey had watched them scream for help as they'd drowned in the flood sent by Zeus and Poseidon.

Those memories of the gods killing Hailey's would-be ancestors without remorse were enough for her to see how sadistic and cruel they'd been. Although Hailey didn't see the depth of their malevolence until Zeus created her ancestors--the Iron Race.

Prometheus, the Titan who had created the Golden Race--the first humans, who'd been killed during the war between the gods and Titans--helped Zeus create the fourth race. To the gods, Hailey's ancestors had been slaves.

She had seen glimpses of them torturing and killing humans for revenge and personal entertainment. She was grateful that the memory ball had blocked her emotions about the memories. Otherwise, she would have been haunted by the screams of the gods' victims, like Actaeon, a poor hunter who had accidentally wandered upon Artemis bathing in a stream. Infuriated, Artemis had transformed him into a stag and commanded his hunting dogs to chase him.

Hailey found it ironic that her ancestors, the very beings the gods had created to amplify their powers, had ended up killing their makers and taking their powers. _Had they really thought they could treat humans like slaves and get away with it?_

She didn't understand why the gods hadn't destroyed them and created a new race of humans as they'd done before. Someone had asked Amathia that question, but she hadn't known the answer. Instead, she'd told them her theory on how she believed the gods had seen launching a war with humans as less effort than creating more.

It was a good theory, but Hailey wasn't completely convinced. _Why risk death out of laziness?_ Though, she supposed the gods had believed they'd win the Great Battle. _Arrogance was their downfall_.

Hailey stopped suddenly. The door to Amathia's classroom stood ajar, which meant she was probably inside. Amathia seemed nice and all, but the thought of being alone with her was daunting-- _what do you say to an immortal creature who 's lived for centuries?_

She couldn't come back later though. She needed her necklace--needed to know that she hadn't lost the last thing her dad had ever given her. She walked the few extra steps to the door and reached up to knock when she heard voices drifting from the room. She dropped her hand and leaned forward, turning her head so she could hear the conversation. It wasn't eavesdropping exactly, just listening to make sure she wasn't about to interrupt a meeting.

'How can you allow her to reside here, Amathia, when you know of her powers?' a voice Hailey didn't recognise demanded. 'If you don't rid the palace of these power-thieving humans yourself, then I will exterminate every last one, with the help of our sisters.'

'You would not harm them, Nemertes.'

'Then you don't know me very well, sister.'

Hailey tuned out, her mind trying to comprehend what she'd heard. Did a nymph just threaten to kill her and everyone else at the Academy? That couldn't be possible. Nymphs were innocent creatures who wouldn't hurt a flower--at least that's how the stories Hailey had read portrayed them.

Sure, Amathia had said her sisters weren't happy about the palace becoming a school and not to go near them, but Hailey thought that was because they were wary of humans, not because they were Tartarus-bent on murdering them.

What was Hailey meant to do now? Running back to her dorm and telling Demi what she'd heard sounded like a good idea, but if she did that then she wouldn't know what the nereid trying to kill everyone looked like. _How do you avoid someone you don 't recognise?_

She needed to see who this Nemertes was, and that meant sneaking a peek. Hailey sucked in a breath and peered around the door. White light flooded the room.

The light vanished, and Hailey found herself underwater, the tang of salt flooding her nostrils. In the distance, Poseidon's Academy drifted through the water, gleaming like a jewel. _What in Tartarus?_ Where was she? A tornado of water whirled before her and then vanished, leaving behind a man clutching a gold trident.

_Poseidon?!_ Hailey gaped and then realised she was in a memory. _But whose memory? Amathia 's? Why?_

A gash extended from Poseidon's elbow to his wrist, oozing ichor into the water, tingeing it gold. Hailey reached for his arm. 'You're wounded,' she said, her voice ringing clear into the water.

Poseidon snatched his arm from her reach. 'Listen to me, Nemertes.' _Guess it 's not Amathia's memory._ 'I do not have much time. The battle is lost. My race is dying.'

Hailey shook her head. 'No. The gods cannot be defeated. Especially by humans,' she spat the last word as though it were poison.

'Zeus has a plan to save the Olympians, but it requires someone loyal to us to succeed.'

Nemertes didn't hesitate. 'What do I need to do?'

'When--' Poseidon doubled over and roared with pain.

'Poseidon!' Hailey rushed forward, but he shoved her back.

'When humans are weak enough to be ruled again go to Olympus,' he growled through gritted teeth. 'You will know what to do when you arrive.'

'I am a spirit bound by the earth. It's impossible for me to enter the sky.'

'Find a way,' Poseidon snapped. 'Ask your sisters for help, but tell no one else of our survival.'

Hailey nodded. 'I will not fail you, my love.'

White light enveloped the sea. Hailey retreated from the door the second the world reformed, and pressed her back against the wall, jewels and seashells digging into her skin.

'I hope that memory reminded you of our task,' Nemertes's voice drifted from the room. 'We need to bring back the gods, and Poseidon will not stand for his palace being a school.'

'The gods need to stay dead, Nemertes,' Amathia retorted. 'This is not their world anymore.'

Hailey's mind was spinning. _The Olympians survived the Great Battle?_ _They couldn 't have_. _If the gods had survived then humans wouldn 't have their powers. The only god powers no one has are Hades's and Persephone's, and that's only because they would have been in the Underworld when they died, so their powers never would have fallen from the sky._

_Maybe Zeus 's plan didn't work, and the Olympians did die. Poseidon did look ready to drop dead in Nemertes's memory. He probably returned to Olympus with the other gods and faded into non-existence before Zeus's plan could work. Yes, that must've been what happened. _It was the only explanation that made sense to Hailey.

And as for Nemertes, Hailey figured she probably hadn't worked out the truth yet, since it wasn't like Poseidon could've gone back and told her not to worry about the plan because he was going to die after all.

Hailey relaxed a little, at least enough that her legs no longer felt like giving out. She shoved away from the wall, wanting to get as far away from Amathia's classroom as possible.

'Did you hear that?'

Hailey froze when she heard Nemertes's voice. _Uh oh_. Her legs tensed, ready to bolt. But her running footsteps would definitely get heard and be an obvious giveaway to her eavesdropping. She didn't want to risk Nemertes hunting her down. If she knocked on Amathia's door and asked about her necklace, Nemertes _might_ believe she hadn't heard or seen anything.

Hailey didn't give herself a chance to change her mind. She raised her fist and lightly knocked on the ajar door.

'Come in,' Amathia called.

Hailey put on a calm façade and pushed the door open. Her eyes immediately found Nemertes looming beside Amathia's desk. Being a nymph meant she was beautiful, with the same flawless skin Amathia had, and dark wavy hair. Her green eyes cast a venomous glare towards Hailey, who gulped and waited for the nereid to lunge or accuse her of spying.

Amathia rose from behind her desk. 'Hailey, what brings you to my classroom so early?'

Hailey touched her bare neck. 'I lost my necklace. I thought it might've fallen off here. I can come back later though.' She took a half-step back.

'No, now is fine. Nemertes was about to leave.'

'We will finish this conversation later.' Nemertes shot Hailey a final glare before stalking past her and slamming the door.

'I apologise for my sister's surliness,' Amathia said, looking tired, which was odd because nereids didn't require sleep.

'It's all right. I remember you saying your sisters weren't happy about the palace being a school.'

Amathia opened a drawer in her desk and held up Hailey's necklace. 'Is this what you were searching for?'

Hailey's body sagged with relief. 'Thank you so much,' she said, crossing the room and placing it back around her neck, promising herself to never let it out of her sight again.

'It's beautiful,' Amathia remarked, closing the drawer. 'A very talented Hephaestus must have created it.'

Hailey touched the heart pendant. 'Yes, he was very talented.' She ignored the jolt of pain through her chest.

She stared at Amathia for a second, unsure of what to do next. Should she tell her what she'd seen and heard? Amathia had told Nemertes she didn't want the gods back, so that made Hailey think she could trust her. But what if Amathia let it slip to Nemertes that Hailey had been eavesdropping? Nemertes might hunt her down and kill her before she could warn anyone about what she'd seen.

_It 's safer not to say anything_, Hailey decided. 'I guess I'll go now.'

Amathia glided from behind her desk before Hailey could move. 'You're a Zeus, if I'm not mistaken.'

Hailey chewed her lip. Amathia didn't seem like the type of teacher to quiz her about how advanced her powers were, but she'd misjudged people before. 'I am.'

'This is an odd place for a Zeus. Why, may I ask, have you come somewhere that you can't use your powers?'

'Because I didn't want to miss out on coming here,' Hailey told the usual lie. 'This palace is worth giving up my powers for.'

Amathia stared at her so intently Hailey thought she might possess x-ray vision. 'Is that the true reason?'

Hailey crossed her arms, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable. No one had ever questioned her motives before. She opened her mouth to say yes, but the way Amathia was staring made her think she'd know she was lying. Hailey dropped her arms and decided it would be nice to tell the truth for once.

'I hate being a Zeus. I don't like the way people think I'm something special, or how they expect me to have complete control over my powers and be able to do anything they ask. I feel like I'm constantly disappointing everyone. So, I came here to escape from the sky, and the pressure that comes with it,' the words came out in a rush.

Amathia nodded her head, her face impassive. 'It's understandable why you feel that way. However, hiding will not solve your predicament. You can't stay down here forever, Hailey. You will have to return to the surface eventually. But I daresay your powers will have you yearning for the sky long before the holidays arrive.'

Hailey felt like she'd been hit with a fireball. Coming to Poseidon's Academy had always seemed like the way to solve her problems. She'd never thought about how her powers would react to not being used.

Once she'd watched a documentary about the effect wearing neutralising bracelets had on criminals. The interviewer had asked fifteen inmates how the bracelets made them feel, and they'd all given the same answer: as though their powers were trapped inside them, and if they didn't use them soon, they'd explode.

Hailey had assumed that trapped feeling was a side effect of the bracelets, but what if it wasn't? What if it was because they weren't using their powers? Would she feel like she was going to explode after a few weeks of no sky?

'I've upset you.' Amathia's turquoise-coloured eyes softened with sympathy. 'That was not my intention.'

'No, I'm okay. I just never thought about what being here would do to my powers.'

'One cannot hide from their destiny.'

Ugh, she hated that word. Amathia sounded like the teachers who believed she'd been born to fulfil the prophecy and defeat the gods. _The gods... Poseidon_. The memory swirled back into her head. _What if the gods are alive? What if Nemertes does bring them back?_ Everyone would look to her to stop them.

Hailey's legs swayed beneath her, and she gripped the scallop-shell chair beside her to keep from falling.

'Are you all right?'

'Uh huh,' Hailey muttered, and reminded herself Poseidon's plan had failed. But she wanted to hear it from Amathia. 'Do you think the gods are dead? They have to be, right? Otherwise no one would have their powers.'

'There is no need to worry, Hailey. The gods will not return.'

Hailey exhaled. _The gods are dead_.

'I think I have kept you here long enough. Perhaps you should return to your dorm and change into your uniform.'

Hailey glanced down and blushed, crossing her arms over her t-shirt. She'd forgotten she was in her PJs and bare feet. 'Yeah, good idea,' she said and darted from the room, racing back through the hallways.

She needed to tell her friends what had happened before classes started so she could work out what to do about it. But what could she do about it? she pondered, climbing up the stairs. _Warn the other students the nereids wanted them all dead?_ That would probably end with everyone laughing at her and calling her crazy. Hopefully her friends would have a better idea.

Hailey dashed up the off-shoot staircase and into the common room, where a few students lounged in chairs, working on late homework. She strode past them to the girls' dormitories, hurrying down to her dorm.

'Demi, you need to wake up,' Hailey said to her sleeping dorm mate while changing into her uniform.

Demi half-opened her eyes. 'The conch shell hasn't gone off yet.'

'I know, but I need to tell you something _really_ important.' Hailey yanked on her socks and shoes.

'Tell me later.'

'No, it can't wait. Please.'

Demi groaned and forced herself to sit up. 'What's wrong?'

'It'll be quicker if I tell you and the boys together,' she said, opening the door. 'I'll wake up Alec and Aaron. Get dressed and meet me in Jayden's dorm.'

'Hailey, you're scaring me.'

'Just get dressed.'

Hailey headed back to the common room where she stopped, glancing at the studying students. Her strolling into the boys' dormitories wasn't something they'd miss. And if they told Madam Grayson, Hailey would end up with a detention--and probably a lecture too. But the thought of waiting twenty minutes for the boys to come out was torturous.

She decided to take her chances-- _6.40am is too early for snitching --_and headed for the boys' dormitories. She breathed a sigh of relief when she opened the door and stepped into the hallway without anyone yelling at her to stop.

Jayden had told her his dorm was at the very end on the left, and Alec and Aaron's was next to his, which meant she didn't have to waste time reading names on doors. She crept down to Alec and Aaron's door and lifted her fist to knock. And then hesitated. Her knocking might wake up someone who would go to Madam Grayson in revenge.

_The boys are probably asleep anyway_. Hailey twisted the pearl handle and scooted inside, immediately regretting her decision not to knock. Aaron was shirtless and doing sit-ups beside his bed, among crumpled clothes and scattered textbooks, while Alec relaxed on his own neatly-made bed, reading a thick book entitled _Mysteries of the Peloponnese._

'I'm so sorry. I thought you'd be asleep.' Hailey lowered her eyes to the pearl floor, blushing.

Aaron sprang to his feet. 'What's wrong? Has something happened?'

'Is it Demi?' Alec asked, dropping his book.

Hailey shook her head, her eyes still on the floor. 'Demi's fine. I'll tell you what happened in Jayden's dorm--maybe put a shirt on,' she added to Aaron before opening the door in the opposite wall.

Demi was already inside and forcing a groggy Jayden out of bed. 'What's all this about?' he yawned, throwing his legs over the side of his mattress.

'Everyone should sit down first,' Hailey said, perching on the empty bed across from Jayden. It probably wasn't necessary for them to sit, but in the movies people always said that before revealing something big.

Once Demi had settled down next to Jayden, and Alec and Aaron had joined Hailey on the other bed, she told them everything she'd heard--minus the bit about the memory ball. Hailey believed Poseidon's plan had failed and that the gods were dead, so there was no point in telling her friends otherwise.

Hailey took in her friends' facial expressions when she finished talking. All signs of sleep had fled from Jayden, who looked as if he'd found out his powers were regressing. Demi appeared disappointed, more than anything. Aaron sat alert, his eyes shifting to the door, as though he expected Nemertes to burst in. And Alec furrowed his brow, deep in thought.

Demi hugged Jayden's pillow. 'This is terrible. If the nereids try to kill us, Amathia might shut down the Academy.'

Hailey raised an eyebrow. 'I think dying is a little more terrible than Poseidon's Academy shutting down.'

Demi shrugged. 'I guess.'

'Are you sure she wasn't joking?' Jayden asked. 'I've never heard of an evil nymph before.'

Hailey shook her head. 'If you'd seen the death stare she gave me, you would know how serious she was.'

Aaron jumped to his feet. 'I'm not waiting around for them to make a move. I'm going after them before someone gets hurt.'

'No, you can't.' Hailey grabbed his wrist and tried to pull him back down. She wanted her friends to come up with a plan that ensured the nereids didn't put anyone in danger, but confronting them wasn't the right way. Nemertes might not have attacked Hailey when she'd seen her in Amathia's classroom, but that didn't mean the nereid wouldn't take the opportunity to kill her and her friends if they cornered the nymph--especially if there were no witnesses around.

'Yeah, Aaron, that doesn't sound like a good idea,' Jayden agreed.

'So what... we do nothing?' Aaron asked in disbelief, refusing to let Hailey pull him back down.

'Everyone needs to chill out,' Jayden said. 'Aaron, sit down.' Grudgingly, he did. 'Okay, so Hailey has learned something pretty big here. Yes, a nereid threatening to kill everyone is something to freak out about, but I think it's a bluff. This school has been open for five years, and the nereids have never touched a student--at least I don't think they have--so why would they start now? I'm guessing it's a threat that gets made at the beginning of every year, which is why Amathia isn't worried.'

'Yay, that means Amathia won't close the Academy,' Demi cheered.

Aaron, however, remained incredulous. 'So, we're going to pretend like nothing happened?'

'We can't,' Hailey said, mirroring his expression. Jayden's theory about it being a bluff sounded believable when you thought about it, but he hadn't seen Nemertes--she didn't strike Hailey as the bluff type, not with that venomous glare she'd shot Hailey.

'And we won't,' Jayden went on. 'We can keep a watch out for them to make sure they're not up to anything.'

Aaron drummed his fingers against the mattress, considering Jayden's plan. 'But we never see them. It's hard to spy on someone you never run into.'

Jayden shrugged. 'I think that's the best thing we can do for now. And I bet my powers Amathia keeps a close eye on them. I really don't think we have anything to worry about.'

Aaron, looking unconvinced, turned to Hailey. 'You're the one who was there. What do you think?'

It seemed unrealistic to believe the nereids would walk into the open and do or say something that let Hailey and her friends know what they were up to, but what else could they do? Going after the nereids by themselves would be too dangerous--they were immortal after all.

Hailey barely knew Amathia, but from what she'd overheard of the conversation, she trusted she wouldn't let her sisters hurt anyone. 'I agree with Jayden.'

Aaron looked disappointed but didn't argue.

Demi hopped up. 'It's agreed then, we've got nothing to worry about. Breakfast anyone?'

'Sure, but I need to get dressed first,' Jayden said. 'I'm not shy, so if you're still here in two seconds, I'll start stripping.' He grinned.

It was enough to get Hailey off the bed. If she saw Jayden in his underwear, she'd never be able to look at him with a straight face again. Demi, on the other hand, looked intrigued. Hailey grabbed her arm and dragged her into Alec and Aaron's dorm.

'I hope you're right about this,' Aaron said to Hailey.

'Me too,' she said, walking into the hallway. The conch shell would sound soon, which would increase the chances of someone catching her and Demi.

'Hailey, wait.' Alec came out after her.

'I'll catch up with you in a sec,' she told Demi, waving her off to the common room. No point in them both risking a detention. 'Are you okay, Alec? Why were you so quiet in there?'

'Because I was working out who Nemertes was referring to when she told Amathia they shouldn't be staying here because of their powers.'

'And did you work it out?'

He hesitated. 'Yes.'

'And...' she prompted when he didn't say who.

'It's you.'

**8**

**Weekend**

'What do you mean it's me?'

Alec glanced down the hallway. 'You might want to keep it down.'

'Sorry, you took me by surprise,' she said in a quieter voice. 'Now tell me why you think Nemertes was talking about me?'

'Well, it sounds as though Nemertes hates humans because our ancestors killed the gods and absorbed their powers. It's possible they think the gods will return, which means there'd be one human they hate more than anyone else.'

'And you think it's me?'

Alec paled. He looked as if he'd rather be anywhere else, which made Hailey think he was about to say something she wouldn't like, and she had a pretty good idea what it was. 'Yes, because you're a Zeus, and the prophecy says--'

'I know what the prophecy says,' she snapped, making Alec flinch. 'I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell.'

'I wasn't going to tell you, but I thought you should know in case you run into Nemertes again.'

Great, now Hailey would have to worry about a nereid sneaking into her dorm during the night to suffocate her with a pillow. _And the list of reasons to hate being a Zeus just keeps growing._ Why, why, why did Hailey have to be the Zeus? 'Thanks for telling me, Alec, but I don't think we should tell the others.'

'I agree. That's why I didn't say anything before. I know if Aaron knew--'

'Knew what?' Aaron asked, coming into the hallway.

'Um... that you... that I...' Alec fumbled.

'That Alec hates how messy you keep your side of the dorm.' Hailey didn't like lying to her friends, but in this instance it was necessary, because it meant protecting them from doing something stupid--like going after Nemertes.

'You're more than welcome to clean it,' he told Alec before looking at Hailey. 'You better get back to your dorm before someone sees you.'

'I was just leaving. See you at breakfast.'

She slipped back into the common room, where three more students had joined the early study session. They barely raised their eyes from their textbooks as she closed the door behind her, which made her think sneaking into the dormitories wasn't an unusual occurrence.

Hailey reclined under a pearl tree, its coral roots stretching into the water beneath the diamond floor, where a couple of clownfish were peeking from an anemone growing on a reef. Around sixty other students sat scattered around the grounds. Everyone else was either sleeping-in or lounging in their common rooms, taking full advantage of it being Saturday.

Sleeping away the day didn't appeal to Hailey. She wanted a few hours to herself so she could attempt to relax after an intense second week. She started by penning another letter to her mum--a task that proved stressful rather than relaxing.

Hailey couldn't tell her anything she wanted to. Every time she tried to write about the palace her hand spasmed. And if she told her about the nereid threat, Hailey's mum would pull her out of Poseidon's Academy quicker than she could say memory ball.

Despite being on Nemertes's kill list, Hailey didn't want to be anywhere else. Psycho nymphs didn't change how extraordinary the palace was. She'd much rather risk her life here than be safe in a school that taught Ancient History from a textbook, and where PE actually meant physical education.

She'd also had a couple of nights to calm down from her initial shock of overhearing Amathia and Nemertes's conversation, and the more she thought about it, the more Jayden's theory about it being a bluff made sense. If Nemertes was serious, she would have jumped straight to the killing rather than asking Amathia to get rid of everyone first. And Hailey doubted a few nereids could kill 500 power-equipped students and teachers.

Then there was Nemertes's dislike of Hailey. She figured Nemertes would have attacked her in the classroom if she wanted her gone that badly--it would have sent a clear message to Amathia she was serious about getting rid of the students and teachers.

Putting pen to paper, Hailey decided the only interesting thing she could tell her mum was that everyone else found her boring compared to the Uniques.

Several students had approached her about being a Zeus over the last week and a half. But unlike Venus, they hadn't asked to be her friend. They'd simply been curious about why she'd come to an underwater school.

She occasionally heard whispering behind her back, and received a few wide-eyed stares, but it was nothing compared to what some of the Uniques were experiencing. The palace was bursting with rumours about what they could do. There was even one about a Unique who could travel to parallel worlds. Hailey didn't believe that one though--it was a big stretch--but it showed how awed everyone was by the Uniques. Only a handful of students continued to voice their hate for them.

Hailey finished her letter and folded it into an envelope, scrawling her address on the front before pressing a gold stamp imprinted with a pair of wings into the envelope's corner. The letter vanished and she smiled, imagining her mum lunging for it the second it appeared on the kitchen table.

Hailey grabbed her leftover stationery and stood up; she knew her mum would write her back straight away--there'd probably be a letter waiting on her desk by the time she got back to her dorm.

She took half a step and then froze, her eyes locking on to the wall of water a couple of yards away. She shuddered, remembering her nightmare. _This is ridiculous_ , she told herself. _It was a stupid dream_.

She dropped her things and marched to the grounds' edge, smiling smugly when no spiky tentacle grabbed her. Instead, a pink and yellow fish the length of her pinkie finger greeted her. 'Hello,' Hailey said to the fish, reaching to rest her hand on the force field.

Tingles swept through her hand as it plunged into the icy water. She gasped and yanked it back, watching, bewildered, as water droplets dripped from her fingertips. _The force field isn 't solid! How in Tartarus does it hold the sea back?_

'I wouldn't stand too close. You might fall in.'

Hands shoved into Hailey's back, sending her sprawling through the force field. The cold water hit her like a charging minotaur, cramping her limbs and tightening her chest as thousands of tiny icicles burrowed into her skin.

Freezing to death was the least of her problems. The fish she'd been watching had changed from pink and yellow to black and red, and grown to the size of a Nemean lion. It opened its mouth, revealing two rows of needle teeth.

Hailey screamed, salty water flooding her mouth and trickling down to her lungs, turning them to ice.

The fish launched at her.

Hailey fought through the cramping pain in her arm and pulled her fist back. _Punching carnivorous sea-creatures in the nose always works... doesn't it?_

A hand wrapped around her arm and yanked. Tingles buzzed on her skin before she landed on solid ground, coughing up water.

'Are you okay?'

Hailey gulped in air. Aaron knelt in front of her, his wet clothes clinging to his skin. 'I think so,' she choked out in a raspy voice. She glanced back at the water, where the deceiving fish had changed back to pink and yellow, and shrunken to its tiny size. 'Where did you come from?' she asked, turning back to Aaron.

'I'd finished my floor work, so I thought I'd come down and do some laps around the palace,' he explained. 'The first thing I saw when I stepped outside was you about to become lunch.' His eyes hardened. 'Now tell me what happened. How'd you get in the water? Was it a nereid?'

Hailey remembered the voice before she was pushed. 'No. It was Venus.'

'Venus?'

Hailey nodded, rage bubbling in her stomach. She could have died, and probably would have if Aaron hadn't come along.

Aaron's eyes burned with pure fury. 'She's going to pay.'

Hailey's adrenaline rush wore off; her muscles twisted back into painful cramps, and her body shuddered as it realised how cold it was. 'Aa-r-r-ron,' she chattered, grabbing his soaking shirt before he could run after Venus. If he left her now, she'd probably freeze to death.

The anger melted from his face. 'We better get you defrosted.'

One boiling hot bath later, and Hailey was back in the grounds with her friends, telling them what Venus had done.

'I'll kill her!' Demi clenched her hands into fists.

'You know I'm not big on violence,' Jayden said, 'but in this case, I'll make an exception and help you, Demi.'

'We should tell Madam Grayson,' Alec suggested.

Aaron shook his head. 'No, Venus will deny it. We'll have to get revenge ourselves.'

Demi pointed a finger at the palace. 'Speaking of Hades.'

Hailey scowled at Venus and the twins, who'd just sauntered into the grounds. If there'd been a sky, she would have blown the three of them away on a tornado.

'I'm going first,' Jayden announced.

A wave tore through the force field and crashed over Venus and the twins. They shrieked and tried to run back into the palace, but they slammed against an invisible wall a few feet from the entrance.

'Not so fast.' Aaron smirked, holding his palms up. 'Your turn, Dems.'

Demi grinned deviously. 'This one's for you, Hails.' She extended a hand towards one of the gardens before flicking it at the three girls, who were too busy banging against Aaron's force field to notice the sea-anemones stretching their tentacles towards them.

The tentacles wrapped around the evil trio's arms and legs, injecting them with stinging poison, forcing the girls to shriek in pain.

Hailey was in hysterics, but she figured they'd had enough. 'Okay, let them go.'

'I don't think they'll be wearing miniskirts and halter tops again anytime soon,' Demi remarked, coercing the sea-anemones to release Venus and the twins, who now had angry red spots all over their skin.

The moment the evil trio were free, they kicked the air in front of them, sprinting forward when their feet didn't meet Aaron's force field, and disappeared into the palace.

Hailey and her friends were still laughing five minutes later. They only stopped when Amathia entered the grounds.

'Uh oh,' Demi said. 'It looks like Venus doesn't share our view about not snitching.'

'I told you we should have gone to Madam Grayson.' Alec's shoulders slumped. 'Now we'll probably get detention and neutralising bracelets.'

Jayden stretched his legs out, appearing not the least bit concerned. 'It was worth it.'

'Definitely,' Aaron agreed.

'I don't think she's here for us,' Hailey said.

Amathia lingered in front of the entrance, her eyes gazing up at the sea. ' _Okaeat_ ,' she called out.

Everything fell deathly quiet for a second.

And then the ground shook.

_Earthquake!_

**9**

**Midnight Snack**

The grounds erupted in chaos. Students screamed and bolted towards the palace to find cover. Hailey and her friends leapt to their feet, ready to join the stampede.

But they didn't take one step before Amathia called out, 'Calm down.' Students froze where they were. 'There's no need to be afraid. Look.'

Hailey stared up, her mouth popping open.

The palace was rising, pushing through the sky of water like an elevator zooming from the bottom of the sea. Higher and higher it rose, until finally the water rolled off the force field.

The sky gleamed down at Hailey mockingly as if saying, 'I win.' Her fingertips tingled, and she shoved her hands into her pockets. There was no way she was using her powers with so many students around.

'From this day forth, the palace will rise from the sea once a week for three days,' Amathia announced, her voice somehow ringing out over the entire grounds. 'I believe we will all benefit from some fresh air and sunlight.' She briefly glanced at Hailey, who could practically hear Amathia's voice in her head saying, 'You cannot escape your destiny.'

_I was doing just fine,_ Hailey grumbled to herself. But she had to admit, she was a little relieved she'd never experience the pain the prisoners on the documentary had from not using their powers.

' _Eikaatva adaur_ ,' Amathia's voice rang out.

The force field deactivated, welcoming in a gentle salty breeze that drifted through the grounds.

Hailey finally recognised the language Amathia spoke--only because she had a class on it. It was Goldarin: the original language of the Titans and gods, and the first race of humans.

Amathia glided back inside as what looked like half the student population poured into the grounds. They stared up in awe, acting as if they'd never seen the sky before.

'I bet you're desperate to use your powers,' Demi remarked.

Hailey shook her head, continuing to ignore the tingling in her fingers. 'Nope.'

'You shouldn't be so shy,' Demi said. 'Give them a show.'

_Yeah, so that a million students swarm me; what a great idea._ 'I'm heading inside before anyone remembers I'm a Zeus. See you later.'

Hailey lowered her head and pushed her way through the horde of students, praying to the Tyches of the world that no one would recognise her. Thankfully, everyone was too busy looking up to even notice her.

She glanced up, too, when she reached the palace's entrance, the azure blue sky forcing a smile to her lips. __ 'Hello again,' she murmured and passed into the entryway, where students flooded the staircases, all of them eager to get outside. 'Excuse me,' Hailey said, squeezing onto the stairs.

She wriggled her way up all of two steps before someone up ahead called out, 'Hey, that's the Zeus.'

Hailey stiffened.

'You're the Zeus?' the boy next to her asked.

'Show us your powers,' someone else demanded.

'Yeah, come on. I want to see a cyclone. Or a monsoon.'

'I want to see snow,' another voice said.

'No. I'm not using my powers.' Hailey attempted to push her way up the stairs again, but the students blocked her.

'Why not? You're the Zeus, aren't you?'

'I don't want to,' Hailey snapped and reeled around, ramming her way back down to the entryway, where students swarmed her, continuing to bombard her with requests. She needed to get away. 'Leave me alone!' she shouted and barged through the students, breaking free and sprinting through the left archway.

She slowed to a walk once she could no longer hear anyone calling after her, weaving her way deeper into the palace. _This is bad. Really bad!_ Everyone at the Academy probably knew who she was by now, and, if they didn't, they soon would. She'd never be able to enter a room again without someone demanding she use her powers.

The sky had stripped away her freedom, and she doubted even the Uniques could outshine her enough that people ignored her.

'I think she went down here.'

_Medusa, they 're following me_. Hailey glanced around for somewhere to hide. Poseidon's stable was a few feet away. Technically, students weren't allowed inside without a teacher, but she'd happily accept a detention if it meant escaping the craziness for a little while.

She slipped through the stable's doors, the salty air engulfing her.

The horses nickered.

'Hello,' Hailey said, quietly closing the doors behind her. 'Can I hide here for a little while?' she whispered, petting each horse before slumping against the double doors at the end of the stable. 'So my life is over,' she said, speaking quiet enough that anyone hunting her outside wouldn't hear. 'Amathia decided to raise the palace. And it's pretty obvious she did it because of me. But I never asked her to. I even told her that I came here to escape my powers. And it was working. Everyone was leaving me alone. But now... I'll never escape again. And it's Amathia's fault.' The realisation seared her heart and tears leaked down her cheeks.

She'd told Amathia what she'd never told anyone before, and she'd ignored Hailey's feelings. 'Why'd she do it? Why is she putting me through this? This will be my life for the next five years. It'll be worse than my life before I came here because at the end of the day, I can't escape back home. I have to stay here with all the students. With their stares. Their whispering. I don't want any of this!'

Sobs tore through her, and she clasped a hand over her mouth in case anyone lurked outside.

Hailey had no idea how long she sat there crying, but it felt like hours. Eventually, the tears stopped and she gasped in shaky breaths. 'I know I'm being ridiculous.' She sniffed, swiping tears from her puffy eyes and realising just how much she was overreacting. 'It's not Amathia's fault. She did it because she doesn't want me to suffer from not using my powers,' she said. 'And it's only three days a week. I'll have freedom on the other four--that's better than nothing.'

The horses nickered again, as if agreeing.

'Thanks for listening.' She lurched to her feet and scratched each horse behind the ears before heading to the doors, where she glanced back at the horses. 'Please don't tell Kendra about this if you see her again.' She didn't want anyone knowing about her meltdown.

The horses whinnied; Hailey hoped that meant they'd keep their muzzles shut.

'Thank you,' she said and slipped into the hallway.

She weaved her way back to the entryway, which was no longer bursting with people, and peered into the grounds. Students were scattered everywhere--a lot of them wearing bathing suits and lying on cushions they'd stolen from the common rooms, acting as if they were enjoying a day at the beach.

'Hey, you're the Zeus.'

Hailey whirled around. Three students lingered behind her.

'Come show us your powers,' one said and reached for Hailey's wrist.

Hailey tore her arm from their grasp. 'No!' She bolted up the stairs, only stopping when she reached the off-shoot staircase that led to her common room. _You can do this_ , she told herself, and took a breath before climbing up the staircase.

About thirty students sat in the common room; their reaction was instant. Their eyes locked on to Hailey and the students leapt up, launching towards her.

Hailey staggered back a step.

'There you are,' a girl Hailey didn't know said. 'We've been waiting for you to demonstrate your powers.'

'I'm not going to,' Hailey said, and considered retreating back to the stable.

'Did you lie about being a Zeus?' someone asked. 'Because that's pretty low.'

'I'm a Zeus,' Hailey snapped, surprised by the defensiveness in her tone. Why should she care if they believed her?

The girl planted her hands on her hips. 'Then prove it.'

'I don't have to prove anything.' Hailey shoved through the crowd.

She made it to her dorm, where she collapsed on her bed with a sigh. 'Just three days,' she reminded herself. 'Everything will go back to normal in three days.'

* * *

Hailey gazed out her window, smiling at the stars, feeling as though they were twinkling just for her. She reached a hand up to them, a cool breeze brushing against her skin, bringing the smell of the sea with it. With a flick of her hand, the breeze evaporated, leaving everything still.

It was the first time she'd used her powers since coming here. She figured it was safe since it was almost midnight and everyone was in bed--including Demi, who was buried under her duvet, her breathing slow and deep.

A dim glow filtered into the room, making the window's crystal doors sparkle. Hailey spun around in time to see the light creeping under the door vanish. _Guess not everyone 's in bed after all_. Hailey had been cooped up in her dorm since this afternoon--when Amathia had ruined everything by raising the palace--and a little spy work seemed like a good way to stretch her legs.

She slipped out of her dorm and spotted two girls creeping into the common room. Hailey tiptoed after them but stopped when they headed for the staircase. Did she really want to risk a detention to stalk after some girls who might only be going for a walk? 'Hey,' she called softly.

Both girls jumped, whirling around with wide eyes. 'We're stretching our legs,' the girl holding a torch said quickly.

'Yeah, we're going back to bed now,' the other one squeaked.

'I wasn't...' Hailey's words fell away when she realised the light the girl held wasn't a torch. It was a glowing orb that burned like a fireball. Hailey had never seen anything like it before.

The light-holding girl inched forward. 'Hailey?'

Hailey shifted her gaze to the girl's amber eyes, which seemed to burn with the same brightness as the light she was holding. 'Yes,' she said hesitantly, ready to dart back to her dorm if the girl mentioned her powers.

'I'm Elora,' the light-holding girl said. 'This is Kallie.' She pointed a thumb at the plumpish girl standing a step behind her, who smiled nervously, revealing dusky pink braces.

Hailey's legs un-tensed and she stared back at the light in Elora's hand. 'Are you a fireball thrower?' Wielding fireballs was a power all the gods had possessed, like conjuring and telekinesis, and was known as an Inbetweener power.

Elora shook her head. 'No. This isn't a fireball. It's a mini sun. I'm an Apollo.'

'I've never met an Apollo who could conjure a sun in their hand,' Hailey said, awestruck. All the Apollos she'd met could only predict the future or play musical instruments, like the violin and guitar, really well.

'Um, if you're not planning to turn us in, we should probably get moving before someone hears us,' Kallie interrupted, gazing uneasily at the door to the girls' dormitories.

'Where are you going?' Hailey asked.

'For a midnight snack,' Elora said. 'Wanna come?'

'Okay.' Hailey had skipped dinner, so a snack sounded pretty tempting right now. And she figured all the teachers would be in bed, so the chances of someone catching them after curfew were minimal.

She tailed the two girls down to the main hall, where the floating orbs flared to life the second they passed through the archway. Hailey squinted against the brightness and sat down at the nearest table, where Kallie conjured an assortment of chocolates and lollies on her plate.

'How often do you sneak down here?' Hailey asked.

Elora shrugged. 'Whenever we're hungry or can't sleep,' she answered, opening a packet of chocolate pearls, its sweet scent making Hailey's mouth water.

Kallie popped a minthe into her mouth. 'Yum. I love mint things,' she said and pushed the plate towards Hailey. 'Help yourself.'

Hailey couldn't believe she'd never thought of using the plates to conjure her own personal sweet shop before. She grabbed an oracle bar and tore open its shiny gold wrapper before reading the message inscribed on top of the chocolate: _Your strength is about to be tested._

'What's this?'

Hailey knew who it was before she turned around. Venus lurked in the archway with the twins, the three of them wearing matching chiffon nightdresses that could have been mistaken for evening gowns. Venus's lips curved into a dark smile. 'Hailey, you should know better than to sneak out after curfew.'

'I could say the same about you,' Hailey replied, her voice clipped.

Venus tossed her pristine curls behind her shoulder. 'Poor Cleo suffers from low blood sugar. She has permission to come to the main hall after curfew. I'm merely being a good friend by keeping her company.'

Hailey clenched a fist around the oracle bar wrapper. 'I doubt that.'

'We were hungry,' Kallie blurted nervously.

Venus regarded her with repulsion. 'If I were you, I'd give up eating all together.'

Nerissa and Cleo snickered.

Hailey shot up, her scallop-shell chair clattering to the ground. 'Apologise!'

Kallie's face burned red. 'It's okay, Hailey,' she said, pushing away the chocolates.

'No, it's not.' Hailey glared back at Venus, who smiled amusedly, making it clear there'd be no apology. 'Why do you have to be such a harpy?'

The insult rolled right off of Venus, who shrugged nonchalantly. 'It's my nature. Now, if you'll excuse us, we've got to inform Madam Grayson about you sneaking out. It's for your own good.' She strutted off with the cackling twins.

Elora threw herself into the back of her chair. 'Great. We're going to get detention.'

No way would Hailey let Venus win. She considered beating the evil trio back to the girls' dormitories--after pushing them down the stairs--but Venus already had a head start, and was no doubt running, not wanting to delay getting Hailey into trouble by a single second. The only other option was to hide somewhere until Madam Grayson concluded Venus was a liar and, if the Tyches were on Hailey's side, issued Venus a detention for wasting her time.

Kallie pushed away from the table. 'I can use my powers to get us outta here.'

Elora smacked herself on the head. 'Of course. Why didn't I think of that?'

Hailey cocked an eyebrow. 'Are you an Inbetweener who can dematerialise?' It was the only power she could think of that could get them back to their dorms.

Kallie shook her head. 'I can open portals to parallel worlds.'

Hailey didn't know what to say. She just stood there, staring at Kallie like she'd grown an extra head.

Kallie shrank away from her gaze. 'It's not that great... I mean, you're a Zeus.'

That snapped Hailey out of her shock. She was doing the same thing people did when they found out about her powers, and she highly doubted Kallie liked being gawked at any more than she did. 'Sorry. Your powers took me by surprise.'

'I hate to interrupt,' Elora said, picking up the chair Hailey had knocked over, 'but if we don't hurry, we'll get busted.'

Kallie jumped into action. 'Right.' She pressed her palms together, blowing out a long breath as she drew them apart. A white sphere of glowing light formed between her hands. She threw it forward, grinning when it morphed into a vortex of swirling lights the colour of a rainbow.

Hailey couldn't help it, she was gaping again.

Elora ran into the portal and vanished.

'Go, Hailey,' Kallie prompted.

Hailey gulped, feeling as though she were back on Poseidon's Island having a panic attack about leaping into the whirlpool. But unlike on the island, she didn't have time to work through her fears, because she could hear footsteps on the stairs.

Clinging to her necklace, Hailey scurried into the portal. Wisps of red, green, yellow, and blue swirled around her. She reached out to touch the lights but they disappeared.

Hailey was back in the main hall, which now smelled musty and unused, and looked nothing like the main hall she'd just been in. There weren't rows and rows of tables. Instead, a long object draped in a white sea-silk sheet stretched down the room.

'Watch out.'

Something rammed into Hailey from behind and sent her toppling forward; her knees and hands smashed against the hard ground.

'I'm sorry, Hailey,' Kallie said, helping her back up.

'I should have moved when...' Hailey froze. 'The portal... it's gone!'

'Keep your voice down.' Kallie shot the empty archway into the main hall an apprehensive look. 'I had to close the portal so Madam Grayson didn't see it. I'll reopen it in a few minutes.'

'Oh,' Hailey said, feeling like an idiot for overreacting. But in her defence, travelling to parallel worlds was new to her. And she couldn't believe she was actually in one.

_What 's the version of me like here?_ she wondered. Was her dad still alive here? Was she actually worthy of being a Zeus in this world?

Elora wandered over to the sheet-covered object, which Hailey guessed was a _really_ long table. 'What world is this?'

'One where Poseidon's Academy was never created,' Kallie answered.

'Nemertes would be happy,' Hailey muttered to herself. 'So what's the weirdest world you've been to so far?'

'Um, there's this one world where humans think the gods are myths and no one has any powers. I think the gods must have been killed off really early in that world--they don't even have monsters or anything.'

_Sounds like Elysium_ , Hailey thought, wondering if her doppelganger in that world knew how lucky she was that she didn't have to worry about prophesies or psycho nereids trying to resurrect the gods.

Voices drifted from the entryway.

'Someone's coming,' Kallie hissed. 'We need to hide.'

They darted under the table just as the quarrelling voices reached the hall. Hailey peeked under the small gap between the sheet and pearl floor to see who she was hiding from. Amathia stood in front of the archway.

'The palace has fallen into disuse since Poseidon left,' Amathia said. 'There is no reason for it not to become a learning centre.'

'Humans aren't worthy of our knowledge.' Hailey cringed when Nemertes came into view. 'And Poseidon _will_ return.'

'I don't believe that.'

Nemertes looked ready to explode. She opened her mouth to snap something back, but seemed to reconsider and shook her head instead. 'Why Poseidon chose you as a follower, I do not know.' She stalked away, leaving Amathia looking utterly defeated. She sighed before leaving too.

'Poor Amathia,' Elora said as the three of them climbed out from under the table.

'We should tell her about our world,' Hailey suggested. If they let this Amathia know about their Amathia going behind her sisters' backs and creating Poseidon's Academy, then maybe she'd decide to stand up to her sisters too.

Kallie shook her head. 'We can't interfere.' She touched her palms together. 'I think it's safe to go back now.'

'No,' Hailey said.

Kallie shot her a hard look. 'I said we can't interfere. This world needs to play out the way it's supposed to.'

'That wasn't what I was saying no to,' Hailey said--although she wanted to. But as Kallie's powers had brought her here, she would adhere to her rules. 'I'd bet my powers Venus is waiting for us in the common room. Is it possible for you to open the portal in the girls' dormitories?'

Kallie nodded. 'I can open the portal anywhere inside.'

'Humans!' the word was a poisonous hiss, giving it away as Nemertes's voice.

She loomed in the archway; her green eyes snapped to Hailey and morphed into a deadly glare, sending her a clear message the nereid wouldn't like her any more here than in her own world.

'Get us out of here, Kallie!' Elora shouted.

Kallie drew her hands apart, reopening the vortex of swirling lights.

Nemertes stumbled back a step with a gasp.

But her astonishment didn't last.

The second Elora bolted through the portal, Nemertes snapped back to evil-nymph mode and lunged for Hailey. Hailey dodged her, leaping into the portal.

A few seconds later, she was back in the familiar hallway of the girls' dormitories. She jumped to the side and spun around, her heart hammering while she waited to see if Nemertes would make it through.

A second passed, and then Kallie appeared, the vortex closing behind her. Hailey exhaled. The Nemertes in her world scared her enough; the last thing she needed was a second one.

'That was close,' Kallie said, looking as pale as a Thanatos's victim. 'We should get back to our dorms.'

'Not yet,' Hailey whispered. She wanted to know if she'd been right about Venus and the twins organising a stakeout. She edged down the hallway and cracked open the door to the common room.

Venus sat in a chair directly in front of the staircase, with a dopey-eyed Nerissa and Cleo on chairs next to her.

With a snicker, Hailey closed the door. _Venus: 1; Me: 2_.

**10**

**The Sirens ' Song**

Hailey stood in the grounds, just in front of the palace's entrance, forcing her gaze down to the rainbow reefs growing below the diamond floor. She refused to look at the sky. She wanted nothing to do with it right now. Not when her entire Powers class was standing around her. She could feel their eyes boring into her, waiting for her to give them a show.

Hailey had managed to avoid using her powers in front of anyone since the palace rose two days ago. But there'd be no avoiding it today. Not when Madam Norwood had decided to have Powers class outside.

'Okay, everyone break apart and practise your powers,' Madam Norwood instructed. 'If you can't use your powers out here, then pair up with someone who can and help them.'

Hailey resisted the urge to bolt back inside when Madam Norwood approached her. She would probably be like Hailey's last Powers teacher and try and mould her into a weapon so she'd be ready to fight the gods if they returned. Madam Norwood glanced at Demi, Jayden, Alec, and Aaron, who hadn't moved. 'I said to practise.' The four of them scrambled off, leaving Hailey alone. 'I never had a chance to assess your powers. Would you mind showing me?'

_No_ was what she wanted to say, but she couldn't exactly refuse a teacher, unless she wanted a detention. 'Okay,' Hailey said slowly.

She finally raised her eyes. The sky was not happy: dark clouds crowded it, threatening to pour rain down at any second. It was the type of sky Hailey dreaded because when there was rain, a storm was never far behind.

She swept her hand across the sky, swatting away the clouds, which drifted into the distance as an applause broke out. Hailey shrank back when she realised her entire Powers class had been watching.

'Get back to work,' Madam Norwood snapped, fixing the other students with a stern glare. Demi gave Hailey a big smile and thumbs up. 'That was very well done,' Madam Norwood said to Hailey. 'Your powers are more advanced than I'd thought.'

Hailey blinked. Had a teacher just complimented her powers?

'I sense you can do more,' Madam Norwood continued. 'But I understand that you probably don't want to be seen as showing off. You can practise manipulating the clouds with wind for the rest of the lesson. I assume you can control the wind?'

Hailey nodded and waited for Madam Norwood to add that she wanted a plethora of tornadoes by the end of class.

'Good. I'm going to help some of the other students now.'

Madam Norwood wandered off, leaving Hailey gaping. _That 's it? _She was happy seeing Hailey push a few clouds around? It appeared her new Powers teacher was nothing like her previous one after all.

_Blue skies._

Classes ended and Hailey headed outside with her friends, who wanted to take in as much sky as possible before the palace descended tonight. She swatted away a few grey clouds before settling on the ground, next to a blue zircon tree.

'Where do the clouds go when you do that?' Alec asked.

Hailey shrugged. 'I don't really know. But as long as I can't see them, I'm happy.'

Aaron cocked an eyebrow. 'What've you got against clouds?'

'Nothing. It's lightning I don't like.' But she wasn't going to tell him why. 'What homework should we do first?'

'Hey, you're the Zeus, right?' a girl's voice asked.

Hailey didn't bother looking up to see who the latest harasser was. She concentrated on unpacking her book bag. 'Yeah.'

'Can you--'

'No.' Hailey cut her off.

'But I--'

Hailey met the girl's gaze. 'No, I won't use my powers for you. So stop asking!'

'Jeez, rude much?' the girl muttered and stalked off.

_Um, you 're the one trying to force me to use my powers for your personal entertainment, how does that make me the rude one?_ Hailey wanted to shout out after her.

'Great, my afternoon is ruined.'

Hailey mimicked Aaron's scowl when she spotted Venus and the twins prowling towards a girl with fly-away brown hair, who was leaning against a tanzanite tree. Hailey didn't hear what the evil trio said to the other girl, but whatever it was sent her running away in tears.

Hailey sprang to her feet with her friends and stormed towards Venus and the twins, who were wearing matching smirks.

'What did you say to her?' Hailey demanded.

Venus's smile widened. 'I told her Others aren't welcome here, and she should leave the Academy.' She sneered at Alec and Aaron. 'That message applies to you two as well.'

Aaron took a step forward, raising his hands, but Jayden darted in front of him before he could activate his force field. 'Don't let her get to you. You'll only make her happy.'

'I'd be careful what you say, Venus,' Demi said, her words edged in threat. 'I can get the sea-anemones to attack you again any time.'

Venus's smile vanished. 'That was you?'

Demi shrugged. 'You deserved it.'

Venus's hands clenched into fists, and her face turned red. Hailey cut her off before she could shout out any promises of revenge saying, 'You should apologise to Alec and Aaron, and the girl you made cry.'

Venus scoffed. 'Or what? Will you blow me away on a wisp of wind, you pathetic excuse for a Zeus.'

Hailey's temper surged forth like a ravenous hydra. She summoned a gale of wind and threw it at Venus and the twins, the evil trio slamming into a pearl tree, sending pearls scattering to the ground and rolling into the sea.

'Nice.' Aaron patted her on the back.

'Hailey, you're stooping to their level,' Jayden chided. 'We should have walked away.'

'I could have sent them into the sea or to the other side of the world. But I didn't.'

'Maybe we should have told Madam Grayson.' Alec chewed his lip, looking like he wanted to bolt and pretend he'd never been in the grounds. 'We're probably going to get into trouble now.'

Demi rolled her eyes. 'Honestly, you two, Venus and the twins deserved it, and you know it.'

'Just like you'll deserve what we do next.' Hailey startled, not realising Venus had stormed back over.

Aaron stepped up to her. 'Leave us alone--and everyone else, for that matter. No one likes a harpy.'

'And I don't like Others infesting my school.' Venus huffed out a breath, pink mist floating from her mouth like a puff of smoke.

The mist engulfed Aaron, who tried to swipe it away, but some of it drifted up his nose. He stiffened. 'How can I serve you, my love?'

Venus's eyes sparkled with glee. 'Come to my side.'

'What are you doing, Aaron?' Demi grabbed his arm, but he pulled free, moving to stand beside a thoroughly entertained Venus.

'That's enough, Venus.' Jayden's voice was hard. 'Let him go.'

'That's not going to happen.' She glanced at Nerissa and Cleo. 'Your turn, girls.'

'I don't think so.' Hailey raised her arms again. Warmth flowed into her hands and then evaporated as music sweeter than a triple-coated Ares chocolate bar floated through the air. The song's ethereal beauty consumed Hailey, making her forget what she'd been doing. Her arms fell to her sides.

It wasn't until Jayden and Alec trailed towards Nerissa and Cleo that she understood what was happening: the twins were singing, using their siren powers to draw the boys to them.

'I'd love to stay and chat, but I've got new toys to play with.' With a swish of her curls, Venus turned. 'Come, Aaron, let's go tell the rest of your unworthy kind it's time to leave Poseidon's Academy.'

Jayden, Alec, and Aaron obediently traipsed away with Venus and the twins. Silence settled over the grounds, allowing Hailey's brain to start working again now that the twins' powers were no longer distracting her. Sweeping the three girls up in a tornado was her first thought, but the boys were too close and would get swept up too.

Hailey turned to ask Demi what they should do. Her best friend was way ahead of her. She had grown a bunch of sea-anemones' tentacles and was directing them at Venus and the twins, the tentacles slithering towards the girls like snakes.

As if sensing the plants' approach, Aaron whirled around and raised his palms, blocking the tentacles with his force field. He glowered at Hailey and Demi and shoved his hands forward.

It took Hailey a second too long to comprehend what he was doing. His force field ploughed into her, slamming her to the ground as her face erupted in pain. Demi crumpled down next to her, hitting her head so hard Hailey thought she'd been knocked out. But a moan told her otherwise.

'I think my face is broken,' Demi groaned, staggering up. 'Remind me to kick Aaron when this is over.'

'Come on, we have to get inside before Venus makes them do something expulsion worthy.' Hailey sprinted into the palace and caught a glimpse of the boys through the middle archway.

She burst into the hall, where only a few students sat eating late breakfasts. As far as Hailey could see, there were no teachers. She supposed that was a good thing, because it meant the boys wouldn't get in trouble for whatever they were about to do.

Venus, Nerissa, and Cleo sat at a table fifteen feet away, wearing matching grins as they watched Jayden, Alec, and Aaron march up to a pair of girls sitting two tables away.

'Stop!' Hailey cried, weaving through tables to get to the boys, having a feeling that whatever they were about to do wasn't going to be good.

Jayden and Alec ignored her yelling and picked up the girls' bowls of cereal, emptying them over the girls' heads, milk and Demeter flakes pouring over their hair and trickling into their laps. Hailey halted to a stop. She was too late; she couldn't do anything now.

'This is bad,' Demi said, reaching Hailey's side.

'We don't want you in our school, Others,' Aaron hissed at the girls, who Hailey recognised as Tanzy and Lexa, first years.

The girls sprang up, milk dripping from their hair.

'You chose the wrong Uniques to pick on,' Lexa spat angrily in an American accent. She levitated into the air, her long hair flying out around her, and kicked Aaron square in the nose, sending a sickening _crack_ through the hall.

Aaron howled, his hands shooting to his nose; bright red blood oozed from between his fingers.

'Now leave us alone,' Tanzy said, her accent matching Lexa's. She clicked her fingers when Lexa landed, and the food and milk coating them disappeared--even the purple ribbon in Tanzy's dark hair turned immaculate.

'Jayden, Alec, and Aaron, this isn't you,' Demi pleaded. The three boys stared at her, their eyes empty. 'Venus and the twins have you under their spell.'

Chairs screeched against the pearl floor. 'Don't listen to them,' Venus snarled, sauntering over with the twins. 'Finish off those two.'

'Don't,' Hailey begged them.

Jayden, Alec, and Aaron hesitated. The twins' sweet singing engulfed the hall, and the boys snapped back around to the two girls. Lexa levitated, her leg swinging at Jayden's face. Hailey waited to hear the crack of his nose breaking.

But Lexa never made contact.

A gale surged through the main hall, sweeping up Hailey and everyone near her, sending them soaring over tables and gaping students. She barely had time to register what was happening before the wind dumped her, her leg exploding in pain as it collided with a chair.

'WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?!' Master Anderson roared, storming over to where they'd crashed. 'Get up!'

Waves of nausea washed over Hailey. Moving would probably result in the reappearance of her breakfast, but Master Anderson looked so furious she was willing to risk it. She gritted her teeth and forced her battered body up, being careful not to put any weight on her left leg, which she was pretty sure was broken.

Master Anderson's harsh gaze melted when he noticed some of them were injured. He pinched his nose and shook his head. 'I shouldn't have used my powers on you. But you looked ready to kill each other.'

'Oh no, Master Anderson, we were only trying to stop these boys from attacking Tanzy and Lexa,' Venus said in a sickly sweet voice. 'They were harassing them for being Uniques--but they referred to them by their old name.'

Hailey glowered at Venus, who looked as though she hadn't been remotely hurt by the fall--not one curl was out of place. She didn't think it was possible, but in that moment, she hated Venus even more.

'That's a lie, Master Anderson!' Demi cried indignantly. 'Venus, Nerissa, and Cleo used their powers to control them.'

'Is that true?' Master Anderson asked Venus and the twins. 'Because you know using your powers to influence others is not tolerated at Poseidon's Academy.'

Venus feigned offence. 'I would never use my powers like that, and neither would Nerissa and Cleo.'

Nerissa shook her head. 'Definitely not.'

'Never,' Cleo agreed.

'Stop lying!' Demi shouted.

Master Anderson raised a silencing hand. 'Enough,' he said, taking a deep breath. Hailey cringed, thinking he was preparing to use his Anemoi powers again. But instead he said, 'I don't know what happened here, but mark my words, if it happens again you'll find yourselves answering to Amathia. Now get to the healing wing.'

Master Anderson left the hall, giving Venus the chance to poke her tongue out at Hailey and mouth _I win_.

**11**

**The Healing Wing**

The clean scent of eucalyptus greeted Hailey when she lumbered into the healing wing. Single beds with crisp sheets and hospital-tucked corners bordered the walls, all of them empty. The only person there was a short plump woman sitting behind a desk at the end of the narrow room.

The plump woman looked up from the notes she was scribbling and gasped. 'Medusa!' she shrieked, bustling over to them. 'What happened?'

'Master Anderson,' Demi replied simply, guiding Hailey to a bed.

The nurse clucked her tongue. 'Did he sneeze again? The last time that happened, he almost took out an entire PE class. Not to worry. I'll sort you lot out.' She approached Hailey with a big smile. 'Hello, dearie. I'm Madam Mendem.' She examined Hailey's rapidly swelling leg dangling over the bed. She shook her head. 'My, my, that does look nasty, you poor thing.'

'I think it's broken,' Hailey said with a sigh, imagining how tiring and inconvenient climbing up and down the hundred-and-something stairs to and from her dorm, classes, and the main hall would be. 'How quickly can you speed up the healing time?' she asked, assuming Madam Mendem was an Aceso like her last school nurse.

An amused smile spread across Madam Mendem's face. 'Oh, pretty quickly, dearie. Now just relax.'

Hailey flinched when the nurse touched her leg. Soothing warmth spread from her ankle to her knee, erasing the pain. It appeared Hailey had been wrong about the nurse being an Aceso. The only person strong enough to completely heal an injury was an Asclepius. Hailey had never been healed by one before; there were only so many in the world, and most of them worked in hospitals.

Madam Mendem drew back her hand and plonked down beside Hailey. 'Now you're hurt,' Hailey said, noticing Madam Mendem's leg was as swollen as hers had been seconds ago.

'We Asclepiuses heal fast. My body will have it mended in a jiffy.'

Someone coughed, drawing Hailey's attention to the bed across from her. Aaron was slumped on it, his crooked nose dripping blood into his lap, while he stared down with a look of utter dejection. 'Looks like Aaron's back to normal,' she told Demi.

'Pity we can't say the same about Jayden and Alec,' Demi replied in disgust.

Hailey's nausea returned as she watched Jayden fluff up Nerissa's pillows, while Alec massaged her pedicured feet. Hailey wanted to slap the both of them out of their trances, but she doubted the nurse would approve.

Madam Mendem got back up, her leg now only slightly swollen. 'Who's next?'

'I think Nerissa should be next,' Jayden said.

Hailey rolled her eyes and turned her attention to Tanzy, who perched on a bed near the door, staring out a window. Hailey couldn't change what had happened, but she could at least explain the boys' innocence. She wandered over to her. 'Hey, Tanzy.'

Tanzy raised a hand as Hailey opened her mouth to explain everything. 'I already know Venus and those sirens were behind it all. I heard them tell the boys to get us, and I know Alec and Aaron are Others, so it was pretty obvious attacking us wasn't their idea.'

'Oh.' That was easier than Hailey had expected. 'Well, in that case, do you mind talking to Aaron? I think he's feeling pretty guilty.'

'Okay,' she agreed, cradling her wrist and standing up.

Hailey suddenly remembered how the food and drink on Tanzy and Lexa had vanished. 'Tanzy?'

'Yeah?'

'What's your power?'

'I can make things disappear.' She let go of her injured wrist and clicked her fingers at a shell embedded in the wall.

It vanished, leaving behind a tiny indent.

'Wow. Where does everything go?'

Tanzy shrugged. 'I've no idea.'

Someone's shoulder smashed into Hailey. She steadied herself against Tanzy's bed in time to see Nerissa shoot her a spiteful glare before leaving the healing wing. 'You can't make people disappear, can you?'

'Trust me, I'm working on it.'

Ten minutes later, Madam Mendem finished healing their injuries and released them. Hailey lingered at the bottom of the healing wing stairs with Demi, Jayden, Alec, and Aaron. Tanzy had left five minutes earlier, after talking to the three boys. But her words about it not being their fault hadn't eased their guilt over what they'd done.

'I'm going to make Venus wish she was never born an Aphrodite,' Aaron proclaimed, his eyes seething with loathing.

'No,' Jayden said. 'Revenge is how this whole thing started. We will _not_ stoop to their level.'

'I agree,' Alec said, hugging his arms. 'We need to tell Madam Grayson. Venus and the twins misused their powers, so they'll get in a lot of trouble.'

'I'm sure Venus already has some lie concocted if we do that,' Demi retorted.

'Yeah, knowing her, she's probably already gone to Madam Grayson and told her how she stopped the boys from attacking Tanzy and Lexa,' Hailey said.

'I guess there's only one way to find out.' Jayden walked off, heading down the hallway that led back through the right arch into the entryway.

'Wait,' Aaron called, hurrying after him with everyone else. 'Are you really planning to let Venus and the twins get away with what they did? They forced us to hurt people.'

'I'm not letting them get away with it,' Jayden countered, continuing down the hallway. 'I'm going to do what Alec's been telling us to do for the past week--tell Madam Grayson. If you want revenge, you can go and get it, Aaron. I won't stop you.'

Hailey expected Aaron to keep bickering with Jayden, but he followed him back into the entryway in silence, with Demi taking up the argument instead.

Hailey trekked up the entryway stairs, fury pulsing in her veins. More than anything, she wanted to see Venus expelled. And that would only happen if she and her friends told a teacher what the evil trio had done. The only problem was that Madam Grayson might not believe them, especially if she'd fallen for the sweet-as-chocolate-pearls act Venus was putting on for the teachers.

By the time they reached Madam Grayson's dorm, Demi had given up on convincing Jayden and Alec to take matters into their own hands and conformed to sulking in silence with Aaron.

Jayden knocked on the door, which opened a few seconds later. 'Boys, you shouldn't be...' Madam Grayson's eyes landed on Aaron and widened. 'What happened to you?'

Aaron hadn't bothered cleaning the crusted blood off his face. 'I had a broken nose.'

'How did you get it?'

'That's what we came here to tell you,' Demi began, changing from sulky to serious. 'Venus, Nerissa, and Cleo used their powers on Jayden, Alec, and Aaron to force them into tormenting Uniques.'

Madam Grayson's eyes narrowed. 'Why would they do that?'

'Because we told them off for bullying a Unique,' Jayden said. Hailey thanked him silently for not mentioning the part where she'd used her powers on them. Blowing a little wind at the girls probably wasn't enough to get her expelled for misusing her powers, but it would no doubt get her a week's worth of detentions.

'Power misuse to that degree is a very serious accusation,' Madam Grayson informed them. 'I wasn't witness to it, so I can't do anything until I hear Venus, Nerissa, and Cleo's side.'

'Don't bother,' Aaron said with a shake of his head. 'They'll just lie and tell you we were the ones doing the wrong thing, like they did with Master Anderson.'

Madam Grayson opened her mouth to say something, but Alec spoke first. 'Did you say you were an Athena?' he asked timidly.

She nodded. 'Yes.'

'I know that some Athenas can use their powers to gain knowledge from people's minds. Can you?'

Hailey had never heard of an Athena being able to read someone's mind before. But an Athena's powers were predominantly related to gaining knowledge, so it made sense that they could. _After all, isn 't a person's mind like a really big book?_

'I'm afraid using my powers like that is illegal--it's considered an invasion of privacy.'

'Isn't there anything you can do?' Hailey asked. 'They'll just use their powers again.'

Madam Grayson appeared thoughtful. 'Go to Madam Norwood. She might know how to block mind-controlling powers--she'll be in her classroom.'

Things hadn't gone how Hailey had imagined, but if Madam Norwood could make the boys immune to Venus's and the twins' powers, it would be the next best thing to the three of them being expelled.

'I think that went pretty well,' Jayden said as they headed from the girls' dormitories.

Alec smiled smugly. 'I told you telling Madam Grayson was smarter than getting revenge.'

They reached the Powers classroom, where Hailey knocked once on the door. She stumbled back a step when it swung open almost instantaneously. 'Enter,' Madam Norwood called from inside.

'I love her power,' Demi said as the five of them piled into the room.

Madam Norwood sat at her desk, three piles of neatly stacked papers in front of her. She peered at Hailey and her friends over her glasses. 'What brings you to my classroom on the weekend?'

'We've come to see if you know how to block an Aphrodite's and siren's powers,' Jayden said.

Madam Norwood frowned. 'Block powers? Why would you want to do that?'

'Because Venus, Nerissa, and Cleo used their powers on Jayden, Alec, and Aaron to get them into trouble,' Demi explained again. 'But we can't prove it, so Madam Grayson told us to come here and see if you have a way to make the boys immune to them.'

Madam Norwood drummed her fingers on the desk. 'I see. Well, since Madam Grayson sent you, I suppose I can help.' She ambled to the other side of the room, where she disappeared through the last archway on the right wall.

'I wonder what room she went into.' Demi took a couple of steps to the side, trying to peer through the archway twenty yards ahead. She jumped back when Madam Norwood exited it and headed towards them.

Hailey stared curiously at the vial she held, watching the shimmering liquid inside change from clear to pink to red to black. It was obvious now that Madam Norwood had been in the Hecate room. Only those gifted with witchcraft could create potions such as the one in her teacher's hand.

'Cool,' Demi said, her eyes growing wide every time the liquid changed colour.

'Each of you take one sip from this,' Madam Norwood instructed the boys.

Jayden took the vial, squinting at the liquid. 'What is it?'

'A potion designed to block mind-controlling powers,' Madam Norwood explained. 'Once you drink it, no Aphrodite or siren will ever be able to control you again.'

Alec plucked the vial from Jayden's hand so he could get a closer look. 'How does it work?'

'You'd have to ask a Hecate,' Madam Norwood said with a prickle of annoyance clear in her voice. 'Now drink up so I can get back to work.'

Alec looked disappointed that Madam Norwood couldn't tell him more. He tugged the cork from the vial and tentatively took a sip. 'Mmm, tastes like berries.' He passed the vial to Jayden.

'Why isn't every guy given this potion?' Hailey asked.

Madam Norwood took the empty vial from Aaron. 'How would an Aphrodite or siren learn to use and enhance their powers if they had no one to practise on?'

_They wouldn 't; that's the point_. 'Mind control shouldn't be practised,' Hailey said a little more forcefully than she'd intended.

'I can understand your aversion, but no one chooses what powers they're born with, and it would be discrimination to make it impossible for an Aphrodite or siren to use their gifts,' Madam Norwood said. 'Now, off you go. You should be studying.'

Hailey thanked Madam Norwood for helping them before leaving. She waited outside with Demi while Aaron and Jayden dragged out Alec, who'd begun quizzing Madam Norwood on where to find a Hecate who could tell him about the potion.

Hailey could see Madam Norwood's point about it being discrimination to block someone's powers--even if they were an Aphrodite. But when it was someone like Venus who abused their powers, she thought an exception could be made.

'Okay, so you were right,' Aaron admitted reluctantly when Madam Norwood's door closed behind them. 'But the next time Venus tries anything, I'm getting back at her _my_ way.'

'I guess we'll battle that minotaur when we cross it,' Jayden said.

'I knew Madam Norwood would have a way to make you boys immune,' Demi bragged as they wandered back to the stairs. 'Revenge isn't always the answer.'

**12**

**The Forest**

Hailey choked back a scream as she woke up. She'd had the nightmare again. The same one she'd been having since her arrival at Poseidon's Academy ten weeks ago: she'd walk into the grounds to find Demi staring at the sea and saying something was coming, right before a sea-monster grabbed Hailey.

She rubbed at her leg, where she could still feel the sting of the barbed tentacle digging into her skin. It felt as though the nightmare was trying to tell her something. _Maybe that going into the grounds at night is a bad idea...? Or maybe that I shouldn't do my Monsters and Creatures homework before bed? _

She glanced at the window, where sunshine filtered into the dorm, making the frosted crystal walls glitter. _No point in going back to sleep_ , Hailey thought, throwing off the covers and rolling out of bed. She pulled on a pair of shorts and a t-shirt before sneaking past her sleeping dorm mate. Well, if she couldn't enjoy a sleep-in, then she might as well pay her old hiding spot a visit and see how the horses were.

Silence greeted her in the hallway. Today was Saturday, which meant 9.30am was too early for three quarters of the palace to be awake. She was glad, because it meant there wouldn't be anyone to stop her from visiting the stable.

Hailey made her way through the common room and down the stairs. The stable had been her main hiding spot those first few weeks after Amathia had started raising the palace. But it'd been a couple of weeks since anyone had pestered her about her powers. _Apparently, if you kept refusing to use your powers and snapping at people to leave you alone, they eventually stayed away. Of_ course, it also meant you got a reputation as a bit of a harpy, but Hailey could live with that.

Hailey continued down the third-floor staircase. She no longer needed the stable as a hiding place, but she still liked going there, especially after one of her nightmares. Something about being around animals calmed her. And she liked that they listened.

The stable's double doors were open when Hailey arrived. She paused outside them and frowned. They were always closed when she came down here. _There 's probably a teacher inside_, she thought and turned to leave, not wanting a detention for being there without permission.

But then another thought occurred to her... _What if it 's a nereid? _She hadn't seen any of them since finding Nemertes in Amathia's classroom in second week. While she'd started to believe Jayden's theory about Nemertes's threat being a bluff, Hailey wasn't one hundred per cent convinced by it. And if a nereid was inside the stable now, it could be a chance to find out what they were up to.

Sucking in a breath, Hailey slipped through the doors and hid in the corner. A few seconds later, someone crept out of a stall, leading a horse behind them. Hailey's eyes narrowed. 'Kendra?'

Kendra jumped, whirling around. 'Oh, it's just you, Hailey.'

Hailey glanced at the horse Kendra was sneaking out. 'Kendra, what are you doing?'

'Letting the horses stretch their legs.'

Something in her tone told Hailey she wasn't telling the whole truth. 'You're not planning to do something stupid like go for a ride, are you?'

Kendra bit her lip, hesitant. 'They're begging me to take them to the sea--the nereids hardly ride them.'

'Did you ask Amathia if you could?'

'Well... no.'

'Don't be stupid, Kendra. If you get caught, you could get expelled. I'll go with you to Amathia right now, and we can ask her together.'

Kendra shook her head. 'I can't risk her saying no. I need to get out of this palace. The horses feel trapped, and it makes me feel trapped.' She stared at Hailey with pleading eyes. 'We're right near an island. I'm going there so I can talk to some other animals. Please don't tell anyone.'

Hailey was aware of the island floating about half a mile from the palace, which was close enough for her to know it had a forest. It was well known forests were dangerous places riddled with hungry monsters waiting eagerly with sharp teeth for someone to wander into their territory.

Being an Artemis wouldn't save Kendra from becoming breakfast, and Hailey wasn't about to let her run off and get herself killed. 'You can't do this.'

'I'm sorry, Hailey, but you can't stop me.' In a quick movement, she pulled herself onto the horse and galloped through the open back doors into the grounds.

Hailey bolted after her, hopelessly watching the horse leap into the sea. She ran back into the stable and reached to unlatch one of the gates so she could borrow a horse and go after Kendra. But she stopped herself. If she went after Kendra alone and something happened--like a giant attacked them--their chances of survival would be minimal, at best. She needed help.

Hailey darted from the stable and almost ran straight into Aaron, who was standing in the hallway, scribbling something down in a notebook. 'Aaron? What are you doing here?'

Aaron's eyes widened for a split second. 'I was--'

'Never mind.' Hailey grabbed his wrist and pulled him down the hallway. 'We need to get back to our common room and get Demi, Jayden, and Alec.'

Aaron dug his heels into the ground. 'Wait. Tell me what's happened. Is someone hurt?'

Hailey spun to face him. She didn't have time for this. 'Kendra's in trouble. I'll explain everything once we get the others. Right now, we need to hurry.'

'Okay,' This time Aaron grabbed Hailey's wrist and sprinted down the hallways with her. 'I'll get Jayden and Alec, and we'll meet in your dorm,' he said once they reached the common room.

Demi was still asleep when Hailey burst into their dorm. 'Demi, you need to wake up,' she practically yelled, shaking her best friend.

Demi's eyes half-opened. 'It's Saturday, Hailey--sleep-in day.'

'I need your help.'

'Get Alec to help you with your homework. He's the smart one,' she muttered, rolling over.

Hailey wanted to shake her again. Kendra was probably on the island by now. 'This isn't about homework. Kendra's run off to an island.'

Demi sprang up and whipped her head towards Hailey. 'How?'

'The sea-horses.'

Hailey thought she saw a glint of jealously in Demi's eyes. 'Why would she do that?'

She didn't have time to explain. 'We need to do something, Demi.'

'About what?' Jayden asked as the boys shuffled in.

'Kendra stole a sea-horse and went to an island,' Hailey told them quickly.

Alec gasped. 'Did you tell Amathia? Has she gone after her?'

'No.' Hailey hadn't considered telling Amathia. It was probably the smart thing to do, but Kendra would likely get expelled as a result. 'She'll get kicked out. _We_ need to go after her.' Hailey felt confident they could get to the island, grab Kendra, and get back to the Academy before anyone noticed they were gone.

'I've been looking for an excuse to ride a sea-horse.' Demi tossed the sheets off her legs.

Alec threw his hands up. 'You're crazy. We can't go after her. What about monsters?'

'With all of our powers, I pity any monster that picks a fight with us,' Jayden said, showing Hailey he was on board with her rescue plan.

Alec remained apprehensive.

Hailey didn't want to drag anyone into danger who didn't want to go. Four of them--five if they found Kendra--would hopefully be enough to defeat anything that attacked them. 'It's okay, Alec. You can stay here.'

'And leave you to get lost in the forest? I think not. I've read books on tracking, so you'd have a better chance of finding Kendra with me.'

The door on the other side of the dorm flew open as Kora and Tahlia burst in.

'We overheard everything,' Kora admitted. 'Thin walls,' she added with a shrug.

'We want to help,' Tahlia said.

An extra two powers sounded pretty good to Hailey, and Kora's healing abilities would be handy to have if something went wrong. 'It could be dangerous,' she warned.

'We don't care.' Kora tugged off a hairband from around her wrist and pulled her hair into a ponytail.

'Yeah, Kendra's our friend,' Tahlia agreed. 'We're going with you.'

'Then let's go,' Hailey prompted, feeling that every minute they wasted at the palace was another minute Kendra could have been attacked in.

The seven of them raced downstairs to the stable, where they each let out a horse. 'There are just enough horses for us,' Jayden observed. 'It's a good omen.'

'Yeah, but how do we ride them?' Tahlia asked, shooting her horse an apprehensive glance.

'The hippocampi are smart,' Alec said. 'If you paid attention in Monsters and Creatures, you'd know they respond to commands.' He placed a hand on his horse's back. 'Down.' He blushed when nothing happened. 'That should have worked.'

'You have to be firm, Alec,' Demi told him. 'Down,' she commanded her own horse, and smiled when it obediently dropped to its belly. 'See.' She climbed onto its back and squealed with delight when it stood up. 'I can't believe we get to ride sea-horses.'

Hailey turned to her own horse and coaxed it to lie down. She shifted onto its back, hugging her arms tightly around the horse's scaly neck as it jolted up, feeling as if she was about to topple off--she wished Madam Grayson had given them riding lessons back in first week.

'What now?' Kora asked when everyone was on their horse.

'We get to the sea and head for the island,' Hailey said simply. Her plan was basically to get to the island, find Kendra--preferably on the beach--and drag her back to the Academy before anyone noticed them missing.

Hailey gently nudged her horse in the ribs, hoping it would move forward at a walk. But the motion sent it off at a gallop towards the open doors. Hailey screamed, clinging to her horse's neck tighter as they soared across the grounds, and then her horse leapt, plummeting towards the sea.

Instinctively, Hailey inhaled and squeezed her eyes shut, bracing herself to hit the water. She expected her horse to sink. But instead she felt it gliding beneath her, as though it were flying.

She peeked her eyes open, and blew out a breath when she realised her horse was swimming towards the island and not sinking to the bottom of the sea with her on its back. Her eyes widened when she saw its front legs. They had transformed into flippers, which sparkled like a rainbow in the sun. Its back legs had also transformed, but instead of flippers a scaly mermaid-like tail flicked through the water. If Hailey hadn't been heading towards an island to potentially battle a monster or two, she might have enjoyed the ride through the sea. But her mind was focused on finding Kendra.

The moment her horse touched dry land, its flippers and tail changed back into legs, and it trotted onto the beach. Hailey slid from its back, landing on the coarse sand, which felt like crushed shells beneath her shoes. This island was nothing like the tropical one she'd travelled to on her first day. It stretched half a mile on either side, leading to rocky cliffs that obscured the sea.

The forest encroached on most of the island, forming a line of trees a hundred feet up from the beach. Hailey was too far away to see into it, but she could tell by its length that the forest was extremely vast. _How are we meant to find Kendra in that_?

'That was awesome!' Demi exclaimed, jumping from her horse's back.

'That was terrifying,' Alec contradicted, sliding to the ground on shaking legs. 'I was waiting to sink.'

'Well, if you paid attention in Monsters and Creatures, Alec, you'd have known sea-horses are excellent swimmers--hence their name,' Demi teased him.

Alec opened his mouth to say something back, but Jayden cut him off. 'So, what now?'

'We find Kendra.' Hailey's eyes combed the beach, and her hope of avoiding the forest was raised when she spotted Kendra's sea-horse resting a short distance away. Her heart sank when she didn't spot Kendra beside it. She sighed. 'She must be in the forest.'

'Stupid,' Kora muttered.

'Let's hurry up,' Aaron prompted. 'Kendra might need our help.'

The seven of them commanded their horses to stay before jogging over to Kendra's horse, where they found shoeprints leading up to the forest.

'Are we sure we want to do this?' Alec asked. 'When you think about it, it's a really stupid idea. So many people have gone into forests and never come out again--and they weren't teenagers still learning to use their powers.'

Yes, it was a stupid idea, Hailey had to agree. And _maybe_ if Alec had made that argument back at the Academy, she would have let him convince her to go to Amathia. But they weren't at the Academy anymore. They were standing in Kendra's footsteps. 'If we go back now, Kendra could get herself killed in the time it would take a rescue party to get here,' Hailey said. 'It's not too late for you to back out, Alec. That goes for everyone. If anyone doesn't want to come, they can stay with the horses.'

Demi, Jayden, Aaron, Kora, and Tahlia all agreed they weren't staying behind. Everyone looked at Alec. 'Like I said, I'm not leaving you to get lost.'

Hailey was relieved she wouldn't be going after Kendra by herself--a forest seemed less terrifying when you had backup to help you battle any monsters. Together, they trailed Kendra's footsteps into the forest, which was the opposite of the rainforest in their Powers classroom. Instead of being vibrant and green with dozens of different plant species, it was quiet and brown with nothing but towering trees and bushes. It felt woodsy to Hailey, and the dirt's rich scent reminded her of her mum's sunflower garden. But there was something about it that trickled ice down her spine.

_It 's the silence_, Hailey realised with a shudder. There were no birds chirping in the trees or insects buzzing--nothing to indicate life.

Hailey jumped when someone sneezed.

'Sorry. Allergies.' Alec sniffed before kneeling down to examine the ground. He studied the twigs and browning leaves, running a hand over the ground. After a few seconds, he straightened and pointed to the right. 'She went that way.'

'Wait,' Kora said before anyone could move. She pulled a bottle of red nail polish from her jacket. 'I thought it'd be a good idea to mark some trees so we can find our way back.'

'You really didn't have to do that. My tracki--' Alec began, but Jayden cut him off.

'Good idea, Kora.'

She grinned. 'Just call me Gretel... or Hansel--whichever one leaves the trail of breadcrumbs.

Two hours later, they were still pursuing Kendra's tracks. Hailey couldn't believe how long it was taking to find her. She'd thought they'd traipse through the forest for a few minutes and come across Kendra chatting with some random animal. But the trail kept going, and going, and going. _Why in Tartarus did she come out this far?_

Every minute that ticked by was torture. Hailey kept imagining Kendra being in trouble. In her head, she saw her falling into an enormous hole and getting knocked unconscious. Or bleeding to death after being attacked by a sphinx.

'Hang on,' Alec said.

Everyone halted while Alec knelt down, rubbing dead leaves between his fingers and tracing his hands over broken twigs. No one spoke. They didn't dare make unnecessary noise in case a monster lurked nearby. Hailey glimpsed into the surrounding foliage to make sure nothing was watching them.

'Uh oh.'

'What do you mean uh oh?' Aaron kept his voice low.

Alec ran a hand over the ground. 'I've lost the trail.'

'As in it ends?' Kora asked.

'Maybe she climbed a tree,' Demi suggested and glanced up.

'No. I mean too many animals have come through this way. I can't discern her tracks.'

'So now what?' Hailey asked. 'We can't just give up.' They'd come all this way. For all they knew, Kendra could be a few yards in front of them.

'Kendra,' Aaron called out.

'What are you doing?' Alec hissed, leaping back up. 'The monsters will hear.'

'We don't have a choice,' Aaron said.

Jayden's eyes darted around the trees. 'I'd rather not get eaten if it can be avoided.'

'Same here,' Tahlia agreed. 'It doesn't seem smart, Aaron.'

'We haven't seen any monsters so far,' Aaron pointed out. 'And if any do appear, I'll protect us with my force field.'

'But--' Alec began.

'Don't worry, I've trained for this kind of thing.'

Hailey frowned. 'What do you mean you've trained for this?' Sure, Monsters and Creatures educated them on certain monsters' weaknesses, but she hardly called that training to go up against one.

'Nothing. It's a figure of speech.'

Alec scratched his head. 'I don't think it is.'

'Whatever,' Aaron snapped. 'We don't have time for this. Kendra,' he called out again. 'Kendra.'

Hailey tensed, prepared for a monster to leap out at them. But nothing came. _Okay, maybe it 's safe to make a little noise. _'Kendra,' she called out, following Aaron further into the forest with her friends, the vegetation becoming greener and thicker the deeper they went, offering plenty of places for monsters to lurk.

Hailey must've called out Kendra's name a hundred times more before Alec tripped over a root and tumbled to the ground. He clutched his ankle and grimaced. 'I think I twisted it.'

'I'll heal it for you,' Kora volunteered. She pocketed the nail polish she'd been using on the trees and placed a hand on his injured ankle.

'This is useless,' Tahlia declared. 'Does anyone else think we're walking in circles?'

A scream ripped through the forest.

**13**

**Rain**

Hailey didn't think. She just ran. And she didn't stop until the trees thinned to reveal the mouth of a cave.

Waves crashing against rocks was the only sound she could hear coming from inside the darkness, but she knew this was where the scream had come from.

Behind her, she could hear the snap of branches and heavy footfalls as her friends made their way through the forest. She didn't wait for them. She entered the cave, the stench of rotting flesh making every hair on her body stand on end as her fingertips tingled in warning.

She tiptoed deeper into the cave, the hairs on her body standing higher and higher with every step. Hailey froze in the shadows as the cave expanded into a large chamber. On the other side, an opening gazed out at the sea and allowed a stream of sunlight to break through the cave's gloom.

What the light revealed stopped her heart.

Kendra was lying among a pile of decomposing bones, with a woman hovering over her. Hailey would have thought the woman beautiful if it wasn't for the two pasty-skinned heads protruding from her shoulders on long necks.

'Scylla.' Hailey choked on a breath and then stiffened, expecting the monster to whip around. But the crashing waves had drowned out her gasp. _Thank the_ _Tyches_.

Hailey knew from Monsters and Creatures that Scylla had once been a nymph, until a witch named Circe had transformed her into a monster. Since then, Scylla had taken her fury out on anyone who came too close to her cave by tearing them limb from limb.

One of the monster's outer heads lunged for Kendra, its neck stretching out like elastic.

'STOP!' Hailey yelled.

The monster's three heads snapped towards her. _Uh oh_.

A wave slammed into the cave, dousing Scylla. She screeched, flicking her soaked red hair from her eyes and sending one of her heads zooming towards Hailey, its mouth opening to reveal pointed teeth. Hailey braced for pain, but the head sped past her and sank its teeth into Jayden's arm, tearing him backwards.

'JAYDEN!' Hailey screamed, watching in horror as he smashed down beside Kendra, where he cried out as the head bit him again and again.

Scylla's other head launched at Hailey before she could run to help him. Adrenaline coursed through her body and she dove sideways, narrowly missing the head's snapping bite as she hit the ground.

'You messed with the wrong teenagers.'

Hailey glanced over her shoulder to Demi, who was raising her palms above the dirt. The weeds growing in the cave shot up like vines and twisted around the head that had tried to bite Hailey, wrapping around its neck until the head spluttered and sagged to the ground, unconscious.

Scylla's other head abandoned Jayden, who was now silent and unmoving, and shot towards Demi. Hailey flew to her feet, squeezing her hand into a fist, preparing to punch it. But the head bounced backwards and collapsed to the dirt before she could make contact.

'Two down, one to go.' Aaron was beside Demi, his palms raised.

'I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!' Scylla roared, charging forward and smacking a fist against Aaron's force field, which became visible, rippling like a lake someone had thrown a stone into.

'We need to get to Jayden and Kendra,' Hailey told Aaron, her stomach wrenching when she spotted the pool of blood spilling around their inert figures. _Can a person lose that much blood?_

Aaron shoved his force field forward, sending Scylla soaring backwards and landing in front of the opening that looked out at the sea.

Aaron dropped his hands and several things happened at once. Tahlia bolted towards Jayden and Kendra, and Scylla jerked to her feet. At the same time, the head that had bashed into Aaron's force field sprang up and flew at Tahlia.

'Watch out!' Aaron yelled, hurtling forward to stop the head.

Tahlia beat him to it, blowing a puff of gold dust from her mouth, sending the head drooping to the ground, fast asleep.

Scylla roared and lunged forward to attack her.

'STOP!' Hailey boomed.

The tingling in her fingertips dissipated as warmth flowed down her arms. She reached towards the cave's opening, where the sky blackened, and the waves crashing against the rocks tripled in size and ferocity, before flinging her arms at Scylla.

A gust of wind surged into the cave and slammed the monster against the rock wall with a bang. This time she didn't get back up.

'Is that Scylla?' Alec gaped, joining the rest of them in the cave with Kora at his side.

'Yes,' Hailey replied. 'Come on, we need to get Jayden and Kendra out of here before she--or one of her heads--wakes up.'

Hailey tried to be brave as she walked up to her friends. Blood matted Kendra's hair from a long gash on her face, and teeth marks peppered her shoulder. But she looked good compared to Jayden, whose clothes were torn and soaked in blood from various wounds.

To Hailey's relief, they were both breathing, but for how much longer she didn't know.

Hailey helped her friends carry Jayden and Kendra outside, where Kora got to work on healing them. _Please don 't let her be too late_, Hailey begged the Tyches, biting her nails as she watched Kora place her hand on Jayden's gushing neck wound.

Demi looked deathly pale. 'Is he going to be okay?'

Blood trickled down Kora's neck, spilling into the dirt. 'He'll be fine.'

Hailey sagged to the ground, beyond grateful for the thin walls in her dorm. _Thank you, Tyches, for Kora._

Fifteen long minutes ticked by before Kora finished healing Jayden and Kendra. She was now covered in half-healed gashes and dried blood, and looked as though she was about to pass out from exhaustion. Hailey, Demi, Jayden, Alec, and Tahlia sat on the dirt near her, waiting for her wounds to heal, while Aaron guarded Scylla's cave, ready to yell _RUN_ if he heard any movement inside.

Kendra sat a few feet away, wearing a grave look of guilt. 'I'm so sorry, Kora. I'm sorry to all of you. This whole thing is my fault.' She shook her head. 'I was an idiot for thinking being an Artemis would protect me from monsters.'

Jayden scooted from Kora's side to Kendra's, placing a hand on her shoulder. 'Everyone makes mistakes.'

'Well mine almost got you all killed. You should have told Amathia what I did. You shouldn't have risked your lives to keep me from getting expelled.'

'And have missed out on an adventure?' Demi scoffed, stretching her legs out. 'I think not. Today's been amazing. We got to ride Poseidon's sea-horses and take on Scylla. It was a total adrenaline rush.'

_Of course Demi would think almost being killed was fun_ , Hailey thought with a shake of her head. 'You're insane.'

Demi poked her tongue at Hailey before turning back to Kendra. 'So why exactly did you go into the dark scary cave?'

'Well, it all started when I heard an animal calling out for its mum. I could feel its alarm about being left alone, so I followed its calls. I lost track of time as I chased after it and eventually came across the cave.' Kendra took a deep shaky breath. 'The animal hadn't called out for a while, and I thought maybe it was hiding in the cave, so I walked in. I tried to run when I saw Scylla, but one of her heads grabbed me before I even turned around.' Kendra stared up at everyone. 'I'd be dead if you hadn't come after me. Thank you.'

'I can't believe we found Scylla.' Alec ran a hand through his blond hair. 'Hunters and researchers have been searching for her for years, and we came across her without even trying to find her.'

'Speaking of Scylla, what's the deal with her only having two extra heads?' Demi asked. 'I thought she was meant to have six dogs growing out of her waist.'

'You really don't listen in class, do you?' Alec said. 'Scylla having six dog heads is nothing more than an exaggerated myth. Although her two extra heads seemed to be as savage as a pack of dogs.'

'Okay, enough monster talk,' Aaron interrupted, standing directly in front of the cave's entrance. 'We need to head back to the palace.'

'We can't,' Kendra told him, climbing to her feet with Hailey, Demi, Jayden, and Alec. 'I have to find the animal I was looking for. It's only a baby and it's all alone.'

Hailey wiped dirt and dead leaves from the back of her legs. 'How will you find it? I thought you said you couldn't hear it anymore.'

'I can call out to it. If it's close enough, it'll hear me and call back.'

Tahlia was still sitting beside Kora. 'Why didn't you do that before instead of assuming it was in the cave?'

'Because I was afraid I'd scare it away.'

'Okay, go ahead,' Hailey said. She wasn't fussed on the idea of sticking around in the forest, but if there was an abandoned baby wandering around and Kendra could help it, she was willing to stay a little longer.

'I'm here to help you find your mum, but you have to tell me where you are,' Kendra called out. Everyone waited quietly. Kendra sighed. 'It must be too far away to hear me. I know it was heading in that direction.' She pointed straight ahead, to a cluster of mulberry trees. 'If I walk for a bit and keep calling out, it might hear me.'

Hailey looked at her friends. She wanted to help find the animal, but she didn't want to keep her friends in the forest if they didn't want to be there. Everyone nodded their heads in agreement at staying a little longer, except for Alec, who had gotten over his exhilaration at having discovered Scylla and was now looking increasingly nervous, with his gaze darting around the forest as he rubbed his shaking hands.

'Okay,' Hailey told Kendra. 'But we can't all go. Kora's hurt.'

Kora was slumped on the blood-soaked dirt, looking as though she'd been trampled by a pegasus. 'I'll be fine,' she argued. 'You're the one who said we have to stick together.'

'I know I said that, but things change when someone gets hurt.' She saw that Kora was about to protest and cut her off. 'I know you're healing, but my guess is your body won't fully recover for a while yet.' Hailey glanced at Tahlia and Alec. 'You two can go as well.'

Alec's shoulders sagged in relief.

'I'm going too,' Aaron volunteered, helping Kora up. 'My force field will come in handy if we get into trouble.'

'And what about if _we_ get into trouble?' Demi asked.

'You're a Demeter in a forest. I have no doubt you'll be able to take care of yourself and everyone else.'

Demi puffed up. 'You're so right.'

Jayden rolled his eyes. 'Great, now you've boosted her ego.'

'You're just jealous there's no water around,' Demi retorted. 'But don't worry, I'll protect you.'

'Follow the marked trees back to the beach,' Hailey told Aaron, 'and head straight for the palace--don't wait for us.'

'You'll need this.' Kora handed Hailey the nail polish.

'Thanks. Now get going, and we'll hopefully be right behind you.'

They'd been walking for an hour and a half without any sign of the baby. As much as Hailey wanted to find it, she was ready to call off the search. It was almost 2pm, and if they didn't start heading back soon, they'd never make it out of the forest before sunset.

Kendra stopped.

Hailey tensed, her eyes searching for a threat. 'What is it?'

'It's the baby. She finally called back.'

Demi took a step forward. 'Let's get going then.'

'No.' Kendra barred Demi with her arm. 'I need to go alone.'

_Go alone? Did Kora leave some head injury unhealed?_

'You're not going alone,' Jayden said before Hailey could.

'You might scare it off if you come,' Kendra countered. 'Don't worry, she's not too far away. If I need you, I'll call out.' Kendra dashed off into a group of redwood trees that seemed to stretch into the sky forever.

A hand on Hailey's shoulder kept her from following. She stared back at Jayden with a frown. He hadn't wanted Kendra to go running off alone either.

'We'll give her five minutes, and then we'll go after her,' he said. 'If we do scare the animal off, Kendra will make us trudge around this forest for another hour.'

Hailey sighed. Jayden was right, Kendra would never leave the forest without the baby.

Jayden's eyes moved past her to Demi, who was about to disappear through the trees Kendra had. 'Demi.'

She stopped mid-step, twisting around to shoot Jayden a defiant look before her gaze flicked to Hailey, asking her what to do.

'We wait,' Hailey said. 'But you better start timing that five minutes, Jayden.'

Hailey paced back and forth, sparing a glance every few seconds to the redwood trees, hoping to spot Kendra. All she could think about was what a bad plan this was. Kendra's powers weren't advanced enough for her to sense the breed of an animal. _What if the baby isn 't a docile creature like a golden hind? What if it's something ferocious like a five-headed hind that breathes fire? And what if something attacks her on her way to finding this baby? _

Hailey glanced at the trees again. _What 's taking so long?_ She turned to Jayden to tell him she didn't care about waiting five minutes anymore, but he was smiling at something behind her.

'Kendra.' Demi breathed in relief.

Kendra was walking towards them--all in one piece by the looks of it. Hailey's jaw dropped when she noticed the baby in her arms. It was half the size of a foal, with sparkling white fur and a gold tail that matched its gleaming mane. A tiny gold horn protruded from its forehead, and what looked like feathered wings hugged its sides.

'What's that?' Jayden asked.

'She's a pegacorn--a crossbreed of a pegasus and unicorn,' Kendra said, running a hand along the creature's back. The poor thing was shaking and staring at them with wary gold eyes.

'She's beautiful,' Demi chimed, reaching out to touch the creature, which shied away from her hand. 'It's okay. I won't hurt you.'

Hailey couldn't resist; she reached out to pet it, too, gliding her fingers down its soft fur. 'What are you going to do with her now?'

'Take her back to the palace.'

'Where are her parents?' Hailey asked.

'She says she's never met her father, and her mum... her mum appears to have abandoned her because she's a crossbreed.'

'That's horrible.' Demi scratched the pegacorn under her chin. 'Don't worry, little one, we'll take care of you. But first you need a name.' Demi's eyes glimmered with possibilities. 'I vote for Snow White--Snow for short.'

'Her name's Rain,' Kendra said before Demi could start calling her Snow White.

Demi arched an eyebrow. 'How'd you come up with that?'

'I didn't. She told me that's her name.'

'Um, I hate to break things up,' Jayden said, 'but has anyone noticed the sky?'

Hailey's gaze drifted up, and her stomach dropped. The few patches of visible sky through the trees had turned a reddish-orange.

The sun was setting!

**14**

**Darkness Falls**

'Hailey, we need to stop.'

Hailey didn't slow her pace. She continued tracing the marked trees back through the forest, the red nail polish getting harder to see with the fading light. 'We can't stop, Jayden, or we won't make it to the beach before dark.' She gazed around at the growing shadows and pushed herself to move faster.

_How is the sun setting already? It isn 't even 3pm yet._ It almost felt as though the island was setting the sun early on purpose, just so they couldn't escape the forest before nightfall.

They needed to get back to the beach as soon as possible, because being in a forest at night was basically suicide. Hailey shivered, imagining an array of terrifying monsters waking up and preparing to hunt for dinner. Monsters like the chimera--who would tear her to shreds with its sharp claws before its three heads devoured her.

'We won't make it out of this forest before nightfall. We have to stop and set up some sort of camp before all the light disappears.'

'We'll make it,' Hailey replied, not bothering to turn around.

'Jayden's right, Hailey.' Hailey could hear how much it pained Demi to say those words. 'We have to stop.'

'We really do, Hailey,' Kendra agreed, the footsteps behind Hailey falling quiet.

Hailey whipped around to face her friends, who gazed back at her restlessly, hugging their arms and looking like they wanted to be anywhere else but here. 'We have to keep moving. The _big_ monsters will be waking up soon--if they haven't already.'

'We don't have a choice, Hailey,' Jayden told her, not budging from where he stood. 'Trust me, I don't like the idea any more than you, but the beach is about another two hours' walk. The sun will be gone by then, and we won't be able to see any of the marked trees. We'll just get ourselves lost--or eaten.'

Hailey couldn't bring herself to admit Jayden was right, because she was afraid if they spent the night in the forest, they wouldn't live to see morning. She opened her mouth to argue, but Demi cut her off. 'I can use my powers to grow some of these bushes around us for protection.'

Kendra was cradling Rain in her arms, the pegacorn nuzzling into her shoulder. 'And I'll be able to sense any approaching animals. But it won't work on monsters,' she added quietly.

Hailey gazed around at the growing shadows. They would never make it out in time, and while staying in a forest was one of the stupidest things anyone could do, it wasn't as stupid as wandering aimlessly around it in the dark--especially when most monsters possessed night vision. 'All right,' Hailey gave in. Jayden's stomach grumbled, making Hailey suddenly realise how hungry she was. They hadn't bothered packing food before they'd left, because Hailey had never thought they'd be gone this long. 'We need to find some food--and water,' she added, feeling the scratchy dryness of her throat as she spoke. But where they'd find a stream, she had no idea.

'There's plenty of berries around.' Demi touched a bush of ripening blackberries, the berries on it seeming to vibrate as they doubled in size 'And their juices would probably be a good water sub--' Demi froze, her eyes growing wide.

Hailey raised her arms to the sky and whirled around, ready to toss a gale of wind at whatever monster was charging towards them.

But there was nothing but trees. She was about to ask Demi what she saw when something caught her eye. She gasped along with Jayden and Kendra.

A young woman stood several feet in front of them. She blended in so well with the forest's verdancy that Hailey hadn't noticed her until she'd stepped forward.

But she noticed her now.

Moss grew in place of her hair, and her skin was tinged olive green--a few shades lighter than the dress of leaves she wore.

She was a dryad, and she was moving towards Hailey and her friends.

'Fear not, we mean you no ill will,' the dryad said in a silvery voice. 'I am named Aleta, and these are my sisters.' She extended her arms out on either side of her.

Hailey, who had been too shocked to move when Aleta had walked towards them, looked to where the nymph indicated and gasped again. About twenty dryads lingered between the other trees. Each looked as beautiful and mystical as one another, with their greenish skin varying in tone, and their "hair" ranging from leafy twigs to blooming flowers.

'We are dryads,' Aleta explained what Hailey had already guessed.

She couldn't believe what was happening. She was actually standing in front of wood-nymphs. She hoped they were more like Amathia than Nemertes, or Hailey and her friends wouldn't be making it out of the forest alive.

'What do you want from us?' Jayden asked. He said it calmly, but Hailey could see how tense his body was, like he was one second away from sprinting if the dryad said the wrong thing.

'To help you. The woods are a dangerous place to be, and you are merely children.'

'We're teenagers, not children,' Demi said indignantly.

Aleta met her gaze, the wood-nymph's eyes a rich brown. 'I have existed for over a thousand rotations of the earth around the sun. How many have you lived through?'

Demi scrunched up her face. 'Rotations of the earth around the sun? Is that like a year?'

'As I said, you are merely children.'

Demi looked ready to keep arguing, but an elbow in the ribs from Jayden shut her up.

'We're willing to watch over you tonight,' Aleta continued. 'We'll keep you safe until the sun is reborn.'

'Why would you want to help us?' Hailey asked. The thought of nymphs protecting them while they remained in the forest was very appealing, but she didn't understand why they'd care about the safety of a few humans.

'Children, no matter their breed, need to be protected.' Aleta's eyes shifted to Rain, who was snuggling into Kendra's arms. 'I see you share this ideal.'

Hailey had never expected to come across dryads in the forest, and she certainly hadn't expected them to offer protection. She felt _some_ of her anxiety about spending the night there recede. 'Thank you.'

Aleta bowed her head. 'You are most welcome.'

'I don't mean to be rude,' Jayden said steadily, 'but do you know where we could find some water?'

'The naiads can offer you water.'

Demi frowned. 'Naiads?'

'Nymphs of springs and streams,' Kendra said.

Aleta smiled. 'Yes, that's right. Come, I will guide you to them.'

Hailey trailed behind the nymph with her friends, mesmerised by how the dryad almost danced through the forest. She couldn't believe she was about to meet more nymphs; if it weren't for the circumstances, this would have been a great day.

A quick glance at the sky brought back the nerves Aleta had eased. The last bits of sunlight were waning, turning the sky a burnt orange mixed with crimson. Hailey gazed around her, paying close attention to the shadows, ready for anything unfriendly to appear.

Although she doubted any monsters would come near them while Aleta was there. Dryads were similar to Artemises, in that they could commune with animals. And because dryads were basically in charge of the forest they protected, monsters and creatures tended to do what they said--at least that's what Hailey had read.

It wasn't long before they heard trickling water. Aleta led them through a cluster of trees, where they paused before a shallow stream, which was transparent enough to see the shiny pebbles resting at its bottom.

'Go on,' Aleta prompted, 'ask the naiads' permission to drink from their stream.'

As far as Hailey could see, the stream was deserted, and so was the forest--not a naiad in sight. 'There's no one here.'

Aleta's eyes sparkled with amusement. 'So young,' she remarked. 'Go to the stream's edge and wait.'

Hailey glanced at Demi, thinking this was all getting a bit strange and maybe Aleta was tricking them as a joke. Demi shrugged, giving her a what-do-we-have-to-lose look before approaching the stream. Hailey hesitated another second, but quickly remembered how dry her throat was and followed with Jayden and Kendra.

She knelt by the glistening water's edge and licked her lips. She was so thirsty, and the water looked so tempting. But she needed to get permission from naiads who were nowhere to be seen. She turned to ask Aleta where the naiads were when her friends inhaled sharply.

Hailey swung her head back and joined in their astonishment. She scrambled to her feet, backing away from the stream with Demi, Jayden, and Kendra. They stood timidly beside Aleta, whose laughter echoed around the forest.

Five young beautiful women emerged from the stream, not a single drop of water clinging to them. Each of them had long blue hair that flowed over their lily-pad dresses like a waterfall.

'Where did you come from?' Demi asked, her voice accusatory.

The naiad in front studied Demi with her crystal blue eyes. 'We arose from the stream.'

Demi shook her head. 'No, we looked in the stream, and you weren't in it. You popped _up_ out of nowhere.'

'When we're in water, we are one with it,' the naiad replied, her voice soft as silk. 'Do you wish to drink from our stream?'

Hailey cleared her dry throat. 'Yes, if that's okay,' she said nervously. They hadn't covered how to ask a naiad's permission to drink from a stream in Monsters and Creatures.

'You have our consent.' The naiad moved aside with the others. 'Please drink your fill.'

Hailey cautiously edged past the naiads, who stared at her inquisitively, and knelt by the stream. She cupped her hands in the cool water, bringing the glorious liquid to her lips and drinking deeply, feeling some of her energy return after a few more mouthfuls.

When everyone had finished drinking, Aleta led them back through the forest. But instead of taking them back to where they'd met, she brought them into a small clearing, which was circled by dense bushes and thick-trunked trees.

As they entered the clearing, four dryads appeared from the greenery, each holding a giant leaf garnished with an assortment of berries.

A dryad wearing a fern dress handed Hailey one of the leaves. 'Thank you,' she told her. The dryad bowed her head in response.

'My sisters thought you might be famished,' Aleta explained. Her gaze drifted past Hailey. 'It appears they were accurate in their assumption.' She laughed a musical laugh.

Hailey twisted around to see what was so funny, finding Jayden inhaling his berries.

Demi shook her head. 'You can't take boys anywhere.'

'Now that you've had nourishment, I think it wise for you to rest. My sisters have gathered soft leaves and moss for you to sleep on.' Aleta gestured to a large pile of leaves covered in moss a few feet away, which Hailey had to squint at to see in the nearly-black forest. 'We will watch over you throughout the night.'

'Thank you so much,' Hailey said again, thinking the words weren't enough to express her gratitude.

'You are welcome.' Aleta drifted back over to her sisters, where Hailey watched in awe as the dryads each disappeared into a tree trunk.

* * *

It was well into the night, and Hailey was struggling to fall asleep. Every few minutes a twig snapped, or leaves crackled beneath something's feet as it stalked through the forest. It made her feel as if something--or many someth _ings_ --were creeping up on her and her friends.

Not that her friends could hear the noises. They were sound asleep beside her--even Rain was snoozing under Kendra's arm.

A breeze swept through the forest, swaying the trees and rustling their leaves. Hailey hugged her arms against the coldness, wishing she'd dressed warmer. This all felt like a nightmare she'd wake up from soon, because it seemed unrealistic she was spending a night in a monster-riddled forest, and that Scylla had almost killed her.

None of this would be happening if she'd done the smart thing and told Amathia about Kendra instead of recruiting her friends. It was stupid to have dismissed the idea because she was afraid Kendra would get expelled. _Better expelled than dead_.

_I really need to start listening to Alec_ , Hailey thought. She wondered where he was now. There should have been enough daylight left for him and the others to make it out of the forest and back to the palace.

No doubt Alec had run to Amathia and told her everything when Hailey, Demi, Jayden, and Kendra hadn't returned. Was there a search party looking for them right now? She doubted the teachers would risk entering the forest during the night, but it was comforting to think of them sleeping on the beach, waiting for sunrise before coming in to search for them.

Hailey almost screamed when Aleta's face appeared above her.

'You're still awake,' Aleta remarked. 'I told you my sisters and I would watch over you.'

Hailey sat up, the leaves and moss shifting under her. 'I know. But it's hard to sleep with all these noises.' Something howled in the distance. _Please tell me that wasn 't a lycaon. _Hailey shuddered, imagining a werewolf sneaking up on them, hungry for its next meal. 'Is it true monsters do whatever a dryad tells them to?' she asked, thinking if Aleta said yes, she _might_ be able to calm down enough to fall asleep.

'Yes and no. Dryads can commune with them, and yes, sometimes they listen, recognising us as the guardians and leaders of the woods. But they have the power to disregard our requests if they so choose.'

_So basically a monster can ignore a dryad and do whatever it wants --like eat a couple of humans_. 'Oh.' Hailey hugged her knees to her chest.

'You need...' Aleta's head jerked up, her gaze darting around the forest.

Several twigs snapped nearby, accompanied by the thundering sound of hooves.

_Something 's coming!_

**15**

**An Unwelcome Visitor**

Aleta's body un-tensed. 'It's all right,' she told Hailey. 'A friend is approaching.'

A white horse galloped into the small clearing. Well, Hailey thought it was a horse, but quickly realised half a man was sticking out of where the horse's head should have been, a bow and arrow strapped to his back.

_A centaur!_

Aleta glided towards him. 'Galdor, what brings you here?'

He opened his mouth to speak, but froze as a breeze whipped towards him. He sniffed the air and stiffened, his eyes shooting in Hailey's direction. 'Humans! Why are you harbouring humans?'

'They're children who lost their way,' Aleta replied. 'I promised to guard them until the sun is reborn.'

Hailey could just make out Galdor's features in the glow of the moon, and he didn't look happy. She braced herself, thinking he might yell at them to get out. But he merely shook his head.

His features softened when he turned back to Aleta. 'Your compassion is why you own my heart.' He stroked her cheek.

_Gross_. Hailey averted her eyes and prayed they weren't about to make out--if nymphs even did that kind of thing.

'Hailey, you're talking in your sleep,' Demi grumbled, rolling over.

The sound of hooves galloping away distracted Hailey from telling Demi it wasn't her. She looked up and saw Galdor was gone, and that Aleta had disappeared back into the trees.

Hailey was considering lying back down and attempting to sleep when her fingertips began tingling. At the same moment, Aleta reappeared in front of her. 'Galdor came to warn me that there is a knoxen heading this way,' she said, voice calm. 'I'll do my best to dissuade it from here should it approach. You must lie down and remain quiet until it leaves.'

Hailey gulped. 'What's a knoxen?'

Aleta's head jerked up, just like it had when Galdor had come, but this time her concerned features didn't relax. 'Remember not to move,' she told Hailey before darting into the clearing's centre.

Lying down was easy. Staying still wasn't.

The tingling in Hailey's fingertips intensified with every beat of her racing heart. Her powers urged her to use them, to be ready for the approaching monster. She fought against her instincts and tried not to move. _Aleta knows what she 's doing_, she assured herself. _She probably deals with monsters every night._

She clutched her necklace, the heart pendant's touch easing some of her panic as she stared unblinkingly towards Aleta and waited to find out what a knoxen was.

She saw its eyes first. Great big glowing orbs the colour of a blood moon. Their hunger stiffened her body, but it was nothing compared to the fear that stole her breath when its body came into view.

It was gigantic--double the size of a grizzly bear. Its skin was black and leathery, and its long claws looked as if they could slice through metal. Its teeth were the most terrifying thing of all, being the size of baby elephant tusks, with blood dripping from their points.

Aleta stepped in front of it, speaking in a language Hailey didn't recognise; the knoxen apparently did, though, keeping its bloodthirsty eyes on her.

Hailey didn't dare breathe, afraid the monster might hear. All she could think about was how excruciating it would be to have those teeth rip into her flesh.

Aleta gestured for the monster to leave back the way it had come. Hailey relaxed slightly--very slightly--when it turned to go.

That was the moment Demi chose to sit up. 'Hailey, I said be quiet.'

The knoxen reeled back around; a spine-chilling howl tore from its snout, waking Jayden and Kendra--and probably everything else that had been sleeping in the forest. They barely had a second to understand what was happening before the knoxen launched at them.

A hand wrapped around Hailey's arm and yanked her to her feet, dragging her from the knoxen's path. The monster landed on the moss bed, sending leaves flying everywhere. To Hailey's relief, the dryads had dragged away her friends, too, and were leading them off in different directions.

The knoxen fixed its red eyes on Hailey and growled like a rabid dog--only a hundred times louder. Fear paralysed her.

The hand on her arm tugged her, and she remembered she had legs and ran, only to realise the dryad gripping her was heading straight for an oak tree. Hailey tried to pull away, but the dryad tightened her grasp and continued running towards it. _She 's going to knock me out so I'll be easy pickings for the knoxen!_ Hailey thought, right before she smacked into the tree.

In her experience, slamming into solid objects equalled pain. But when she hit the tree, her body floated with airiness. _Is this what being knocked out feels like? It 's nice_. At least it was better than her being awake when the knoxen ate her.

With a jolt, Hailey realised she wasn't unconscious. She could still see everything.

And the knoxen was charging towards her!

She tried to run, but her body was stuck in place. She glanced down to see what was wrong with her legs and sucked in a breath. Her legs weren't there. All she could see was the trunk of a tree. The same tree the dryad had smashed her into.

But Hailey wasn't lying on the ground lifeless or in pain, which meant the dryad had taken her _inside_ the tree. She knew nymphs could pass in and out of the parts of nature they protected--like the naiads at the stream--but she hadn't thought they could take humans with them.

The knoxen halted in front of the tree Hailey hid in. Its enormous claws swiped out, slashing the bark. Pain seared Hailey's skin and she cried out; at least she tried to, but it came out as a creaking moan.

The knoxen bayed, pumping fresh terror through Hailey's body, and pressed one of its mammoth paws on the tree trunk. The tips of its claws resting on the bark, poised to tear through it again.

The monster sniffed the tree, its hot rancid breath brushing against Hailey's skin and reminding her of rotting meat. She expected it to smell her inside and start clawing at the bark in an attempt to get at her. Instead, the knoxen howled in frustration and ran off.

A few seconds passed before hands pushed her gently from behind, and she slipped out of the tree, a dryad coming out behind her. Hailey opened her mouth to ask what had just happened--and thank her for saving her life--when Demi pulled her into a tight hug.

'You're all right!' her best friend said with an exclamation of relief.

'Did you get changed into a tree as well?' Jayden asked, jogging over to them with Kendra, who was clutching a trembling Rain in her arms.

Hailey nodded. 'I'd be dead otherwise.'

Kendra ran her hand down Rain's back, trying to calm her. 'I didn't know nymphs could do that kind of thing.'

'That makes me feel better,' Demi said. 'I thought I must have dozed off during Madam Grayson's lesson on nymphs' powers, but I guess she didn't bother mentioning this little trick.'

'We like to keep it a secret,' Aleta said, appearing beside them. 'If humans learned that we could share our gifts with them, they might seek us more fervently than they already do.'

'Don't worry, we won't tell anyone,' Jayden assured her. 'It's the least we can do to thank you for saving our lives.'

Aleta bowed her head, as if what she had done was no big deal. But being alive was a pretty big deal to Hailey. She turned around to thank the dryad who had saved her. She frowned, watching the nymph stroke the deep gashes the knoxen had clawed into the tree.

'She is healing it,' Aleta explained. 'You felt the tree's anguish, yes?'

Hailey remembered the searing pain. 'It's gone now. Why did I feel it?'

'Your spirit was merged with the tree--you were one in the same. Its pain was your pain,' Aleta said, sounding a lot like the naiad they'd met at the stream. 'The threat is gone now. You can return to your slumber with peace of mind.'

Hailey held back a laugh. _How do you go back to sleep with peace of mind after almost becoming dinner?_

Hailey and her friends were up and ready to go the second the first ray of sunlight stretched into the forest. None of them had dared fall back asleep after the knoxen's attack. They'd spent the rest of the night jumping at every sound they'd heard. Thankfully, no other monsters had bothered them.

Aleta led them from the clearing and back to where they'd first met so they could follow Kora's marked trees out of the forest. 'Thanks again for everything,' Hailey said.

'My sisters and I were happy to help,' Aleta replied. 'Your passage back through the woods should be unhindered now that the sun has been reborn.' Aleta placed a hand on Rain's head. 'Be well, creature of the woods. May you find happiness in your new home.'

Kendra held Rain out. Her eyes were hesitant and sad as she asked, 'Do you want to keep her?'

No words could describe the horror on Demi's face. 'No! We're taking her.' She reached out to snatch Rain.

Jayden grabbed her arms. 'Demi, she's not ours.'

'Do not fear, I won't take her from you,' Aleta said. 'The choice is hers to leave.'

Kendra clutched Rain back against her chest, and Jayden let go of Demi, who rushed to the pegacorn, patting her while she told her how much she'd like living at the palace.

'Be well,' Aleta bid them and vanished into the trees.

'Let's get going,' Jayden said, taking the lead.

Aside from Demi, who kept talking about how incredible their time in the forest had been--she seemed to think terrifying and exciting were the same thing--they walked in silence, the only sound the snap of branches and crinkle of leaves beneath their feet.

Hailey was positive a search party was looking for them now, and she kept expecting to hear someone shout her name or a teacher to appear from the foliage. But the forest was silent, and they were alone.

_They 're probably searching a different part of the forest_, Hailey thought. _Or maybe they 're getting organised on the beach--it's still pretty early_. Either way, Hailey was glad they hadn't been found yet. She had no objection to delaying the expulsion that would no doubt be her punishment for running off.

She wouldn't argue with Amathia's decision. She deserved to be expelled after almost getting her friends, and herself, killed--twice. But she would argue that her friends be allowed to stay at the Academy. She'd make sure Amathia knew coming out here was all her idea.

'Sweet land!' Demi exclaimed when they exited the forest. She collapsed to her knees and cupped the sand in her hands, gazing at it as though she had never seen anything so wonderful.

'We were always on land, Dems,' Jayden told her with a roll of his eyes.

The sand slipped through Demi's fingers. 'You know what I mean.'

'Oh Medusa!'

Kendra's exclamation told Hailey that her second theory about the search party being on the beach was right. She shuffled past her, expecting to see teachers sprinting towards them. But, aside from the sleeping horses, the beach was deserted.

'Kendra, why did...' Hailey's jaw dropped.

'What's the matter?' Jayden asked.

'The palace is gone.'

**16**

**Rain 's Dash**

'That's not possible,' Demi said, leaping to her feet. 'The palace isn't meant to descend until tonight.'

Demi was right about the palace not being scheduled to descend until tonight, but it didn't change the fact that all Hailey could see when she looked at the sea was miles and miles of open water--not a palace in sight.

Hailey fought the urge to collapse. She'd thought once they'd escaped the forest everything would be all right, that they'd get rescued and taken back to the palace. But there was no rescue party--and there definitely wasn't a palace.

'Medusa! The palace _is_ gone!' Demi shrieked. 'We've been marooned!'

'Everyone needs to calm down,' Jayden said. 'We're jumping to conclusions thinking the palace left without us. Aaron and the others would never have allowed it. It's probably moved around the island.'

Hailey's stomach dropped as realisation settled over her. 'Jayden's right, the others wouldn't have abandoned us.' She'd been assuming the entire time that her friends had made it back to the palace. _What if they didn 't?_ 'They're still in the forest. We have to go back.'

'Hailey, why would you think tha--' Jayden began.

'You made it,' someone called out.

Hailey's eyes darted down the beach, her body un-tensing when she spotted Alec jogging towards them.

'Alec?' Demi said in surprise. 'Where did you come from?' she asked when he reached them.

'I was lying beside the horses,' he explained, tossing a hand in their direction. 'I'm glad you're all okay. We were starting to think Scylla had tracked you down.'

_We?_ Hailey glanced back at the dozing horses, thinking if she'd missed Alec, she'd probably missed the others too. But the horses were alone.

Alec's eyes glistened with curiosity when he spotted Rain. 'Oh, what's that?'

'Where are Aaron, Kora, and Tahlia?' Jayden asked before Kendra could reply.

'And why aren't you back at the Academy?' Hailey added.

'When we came out of the forest the palace was gone,' he said, answering Hailey's question first.

That meant the palace descended right after they left. _But why?_

'Aaron wanted to go back into the forest after you,' Alec continued, 'especially when the sun started to set. He wouldn't listen to any of us when we told him it was suicide, so Tahlia had to knock him out with sleep dust to stop him from running off. We made camp on the beach, and as soon as the sun rose, the others went looking for you, while I waited here, just in case you came back.'

'But we didn't see them on our way out,' Hailey said, her stomach twisting into knots. 'If they were following the nail polish, we should have run into them.'

'They might have wandered off course to hide from something,' Jayden said before anyone could freak out.

'We need to go back into the...' Hailey's words fell away as tingles swept into her fingertips.

Rain snorted and squirmed, fighting to get free of Kendra's arms. 'What's wrong, Rain?' Kendra's jaw dropped at whatever the pegacorn's response was.

'What is it?' Alec asked.

A shrill cry pierced the sky, freezing Hailey's blood. Her gaze shot up, her heart stumbling a beat.

A monstrous creature circled the sky. Brown and white feathers coated its top half, ruffling as it soared through the air on powerful wings. Its front two feet were black talons that matched the creature's beak in sharpness. Its lower half was lean and muscular, covered in short brown fur, with a long spiked tail trailing behind two encyclopaedia-sized paws.

_A griffin!_

Hailey's first instinct was to run. But then she remembered Madam Grayson telling them in Monsters and Creatures that griffins are treasure guardians and only attack if you go near their nest. And Hailey couldn't see any signs of a nest nearby.

The griffin's eagle eyes lingered on her and her friends, studying them. 'It's just curious,' Hailey said, more to reassure herself than anyone else.

The monster released them from its gaze and flew back towards the trees.

'I can't believe we saw a griffin!' Demi practically shrieked with glee, bouncing on her toes. 'I don't even think Madam Grayson's seen one.'

'It's incredibly rare to sight one,' Alec agreed, his face awestruck. 'It must have heard our voices and come to make sure we weren't heading for its nest. My dad will be so jealous when I tell him.'

'It's okay, Rain,' Kendra said in a soothing voice to the pegacorn, who continued to struggle in her arms. 'Rain, no.' Rain squeezed from her grasp, falling spread-eagled on the sand before galloping down the shore. 'Stop, Rain!' Kendra cried, bolting after her.

Everything slowed down. A shadow swept over them, and the griffin zoomed towards Kendra and the fleeing Rain.

'Watch out!' Hailey yelled.

Kendra whipped around and sprang to the side as the griffin dove. But it wasn't interested in her. Its claws closed around Rain, whose squealing ripped through Hailey's soul as she watched the griffin fly away.

'RAIN!' Kendra screamed and sprinted after her.

'Kendra, wait!' Hailey yelled, taking off down the beach. The adrenaline pumping through her body wiping away her exhaustion, allowing her to run as fast as possible as she tried to stop her friend from taking on a monster.

_This is insane_ , was all Hailey could think as she raced across the sand after Kendra, who was getting further and further ahead of her. The griffin was already at the end of the beach--about 300 yards ahead--swooping down to land in a giant nest perched on one of the rocky cliff's ledges. Hailey's aching legs urged her to run in the opposite direction. To get as far away from the monster as she could. But she kept running towards it, and didn't stop until she reached the cliff, which Kendra was currently staring up at, her eyes locked on the giant nest 400 feet above them.

Hailey clutched at the stabbing pain near her ribs, and leaned over to catch her breath, her vision blurring slightly as her lungs burned for air.

'Kendra - don't!' Jayden's voice warned from behind her.

Hailey glanced back up to find Kendra starting to climb the cliff, which looked more than happy to help someone to a deathly fall. 'No - Kendra,' Hailey puffed out. 'The - griffin...'

As if hearing its name, the monster screeched and soared into the air. Warmth poured into Hailey's fingertips as she stretched her arms into the sky, ready to blow the griffin back with a gale. But it didn't even look at her and her friends. It simply flew off towards the forest.

'Medusa - I thought - we were - goners,' Alec said, looking ready to pass out from terror, or perhaps simply lack of air from running so far.

'Yeah, that was - lucky,' Demi agreed, leaning a hand against one of the small bare trees scattered around the base of the cliff and clutching at a stitch in her side with the other. 'Guess it didn't - see us.'

'Kendra, get down,' Aaron ordered, not even appearing out of breath from the 300-yard dash they'd all just done.

'No,' Kendra called back, continuing to scale the cliff--she was about thirty feet up. 'Rain is calling for help. I'm not leaving her.'

If Kendra got much higher and slipped... Hailey shuddered, not wanting to think about it. She didn't want the pegacorn to get eaten either, but there had to be a better way to save Rain than climbing a cliff without any safety equipment. 'Kendra, if you fall--'

'I won't, _if_ you stop distracting me,' Kendra shot back, pulling herself up higher and higher.

'She's doing all right so far,' Jayden said. 'And I can't see the griffin.'

'Let's hope it doesn't come back anytime soon.' Hailey glanced at the empty sky, praying the Tyches would continue blessing them with good luck and that the griffin wouldn't return for its snack--Rain--until after Kendra had completed her rescue mission.

The next hour was torture. Hailey waited with her friends, watching Kendra climb the cliff with bated breath. Hailey's stomach somersaulted as Kendra's foot slipped, pieces of rock crumbling off down the cliff before she regained her footing and continued up. _Thank the Tyches she 's almost at the top_, Hailey thought; her nerves couldn't take much more of watching Kendra, knowing it would only take one wrong foot placement to send her to her death. She wished Aaron was here. At least then if Kendra did fall, he'd be able to catch her with his force field.

'She made it,' Jayden sighed in relief as Kendra pulled herself onto the ledge and climbed into the giant nest of branches.

'I don't know how she'll get down with Rain in her arms though.' Hailey rubbed her heart pendant between her fingers. 'Maybe someone should run back and see if Aaron's out of the forest yet.'

'Don't worry, I've figured that part out,' Demi said. 'I'll use my powers to--'

A screech sliced through the air.

Hailey's eyes snapped to the griffin flying towards the cliff. 'It's coming back, Kendra!' she shouted.

Kendra appeared at the edge of the nest, clutching Rain. She stared down at Hailey, Demi, Jayden, and Alec, who yelled and pointed to the sky. Her gaze flicked up to the incoming creature.

Alec gulped. 'She's not going to make it.' His voice was barely above a whisper.

The griffin spotted Kendra and released a piercing cry, swooping towards its nest.

Warmth poured into Hailey's fingertips. She threw her arms up, preparing to blow the beast to the other side of the world, and prayed to the Tyches she could control her powers well enough to avoid sweeping up Kendra.

Rain leapt from Kendra's arms, back into the nest, and Hailey hesitated.

That was all it took.

In that second of hesitation, the griffin swung its spiked tail. It collided with Kendra and sent her soaring off the cliff.

**17**

**The Griffin 's Nest**

'NO!' Demi screamed.

Jayden hugged her to his chest so she couldn't watch Kendra fall. Hailey didn't have the luxury of looking away. She stood frozen while part of her mind told her this wasn't real, that Kendra wasn't about to die.

_Use your powers!_ a voice screamed in her head. Warmth poured from her fingertips, shooting towards Kendra as Hailey summoned a gale of wind to catch her.

She fell straight through it.

_COME ON!_ Her hands shook as she poured everything she had into intensifying the wind.

Instead of stopping Kendra mid-fall, the wind smacked her into the jagged cliff, and Hailey dropped her hands with a gasp, feeling completely betrayed by her powers. Kendra was falling too fast for her wind to work. Once again, she was a complete failure as a Zeus. She squeezed her eyes shut and waited for the sickening thud that would signal her friend's death.

But it didn't come.

She kept her eyes shut a few more seconds, thinking she'd misjudged the time it would take Kendra to hit the ground. When there was still no thud, she dared to take a peek, expelling a gasp of air.

Alec stood at the foot of the cliff, cradling a limp Kendra. Hailey's first thought was that she'd missed the thud, and Alec had picked Kendra's dead body off the ground. But as Alec walked towards her, she noticed that none of Kendra's bones were bent at strange angles, which was what you'd expect after someone had just fallen 400 feet--not to mention a lot of blood and gore. But aside from bleeding gashes on her stomach and head, Kendra was unharmed. _How 's that possible?_

Alec carefully placed her on the ground.

'I don't understand,' were the only words Hailey could manage.

'Kendra!' Demi cried, peeling herself from Jayden, who stared, dumbfounded. She fell to her knees beside Kendra and shook her. When she didn't respond, Demi looked up at Alec, tears glistening in her eyes. 'Is she dead?'

He slowly shook his head. 'No. She's just passed out.'

'How?' the question came from Jayden this time. 'How is she alive after that fall?'

Alec appeared as perplexed as everyone else. 'I caught her,' he said in a voice edged in uncertainty.

Hailey gazed back at the griffin's nest and then down to Kendra, thinking maybe the fall wasn't as high as she'd first thought, but it definitely wasn't less than 400 feet. 'That's not possible. From that height, she would have crushed you if you'd tried.'

Alec opened his mouth to say something, but Rain's squealing from above cut him off.

'We have to save her,' Demi pleaded, staring towards the nest.

'We will,' Hailey promised, but she had no idea how to get up there, since climbing would take too long.

'Get on that tree,' Demi ordered.

Hailey blinked at her. 'What?'

'You and Jayden on that tree. Now!'

The tree Demi was pointing to was so short its lowest branch came to Hailey's shoulder. But she knew better than to argue with Demi, and pulled herself onto it with Jayden.

Demi aimed an arm at the tree. 'Hold on tight.'

'Whoa.' Hailey's body jerked as the tree shot up like an elevator. She grabbed the branch above her to keep from losing her balance.

'Being friends with a Demeter definitely has its perks,' Jayden remarked. 'Just don't look down.'

Hailey was too focused on looking up to spare a glance down. The griffin's nest was fast approaching.

The tree jolted to a stop. Hailey eyed the massive griffin, which was too busy playing with its food--Rain--to notice her and Jayden's arrival. She wasn't sure how they'd survive this, considering the griffin was five times bigger than them and armed with deadly talons and teeth. On the plus side, if she died it meant she wouldn't have to worry about being stranded on an island forever.

'I'll distract the griffin. You get Rain.' Jayden leapt onto the ledge before Hailey could grab him.

She watched in horror as he picked up a handful of rocks and started pelting them at the griffin's back.

The monster's head snapped around, its sharp eyes fixing on Jayden as he began backing away. The griffin screeched and leapt from its nest, charging at him.

Hailey stiffened when it came towards her, thinking it would see her and send her flying off the cliff. But its eyes were locked on Jayden, and it hurtled by her without a single glance.

Hailey lunged onto the ledge and scrambled towards the nest, which was a collection of mammoth-sized branches that no human could have broken off without a chainsaw--or the power of Heracles. The nest came to Hailey's waist, and she had to use the branches to boost herself into it, landing with a soft thud.

'Wow.' The nest was a treasure trove littered with ancient coins, crowns embedded with jewels, swords with hilts carved from rubies, and even a gold helmet. And scattered among the trinkets were rotting carcasses.

Hailey tried hard not to vomit as their putrefying smell smothered her. She distracted her mind from the dead animals by focusing on Rain, who was cowering at the other end of the nest. 'It's all right. I'm here now.'

'Watch out!' someone yelled from below.

_Jayden!_

'I'll be right back,' Hailey told Rain and scrambled out in time to see the griffin swipe at Jayden with its talons. Blood splattered his shirt and he howled in pain, stumbling backwards.

Something snapped inside Hailey.

She'd had enough of monsters attacking her. First Scylla tried to kill them, and then a knoxen, and now a griffin. 'I've had it with this damn island!'

She raised her arms, anger pulsing through her veins. The blue sky darkened to black as storm clouds flooded in, and Hailey could practically feel her eye colour changing to match it. She imagined her anger morphing into a ball in the pit of her stomach. Around her thunder rumbled and lightning flashed. The wind increased in speed and ferocity, whipping her auburn hair about.

The griffin wasn't paying attention to the storm. Its talons gleamed as it moved to swipe Jayden again.

'Leave him alone!' Hailey threw her hands at the griffin, releasing the ball of anger she'd formed.

A blinding streak of lightning exploded from the sky and struck the griffin. A deafening _roar_ of thunder shattered the air, and the monster plunged from the cliff in a fiery ball.

The storm clouds withered into wisps, and the blue sky re-emerged as Hailey sprinted towards Jayden. 'Are you okay?' she asked, helping him to his feet.

'Just a couple of scratches, nothing serious,' he said dismissively. He glanced over the ledge to the dead griffin; smoke curled from the monster's smouldering body, making the air smell like burning feathers. 'Ouch. Remind me never to get on your bad side.'

Hailey smiled; if he was making quips, then he was fine. 'I'm going to get Rain.' She ran back to the nest, climbing into it again and scooping up the trembling pegacorn. 'Don't worry, little one, you're safe now.' Hailey whirled around when she heard someone drop into the nest. 'Demi? I thought you were on the ground.'

'I was,' she said, rushing over to give Rain a pat. 'When Kendra woke up, I decided you two shouldn't have all the fun. But you killed the griffin as I was coming up--nice work, by the way.' Demi gazed around. 'I guess this means the treasure is all ours.'

Jayden landed in the nest with a slight wince, touching the scratches on his chest tentatively. 'I don't think so. We're not thieves.'

'Speak for yourself.' Demi placed a diamond-encrusted diadem on her head. 'I always knew I was a princess, and now I have the tiara to prove it.'

'Come on, Dems, you're not taking this stuff.' Jayden snatched the diadem off her.

She scowled. 'We just killed a griffin. I think we deserve some sort of reward.'

'Technically, Hailey killed the griffin.'

Demi waved her hand dismissively. 'Details.' She twisted to Hailey, who was running a hand along Rain's bony spine, trying to calm her. 'Hailey, you agree with me, right? We deserve some of this treasure?'

Hailey thought they deserved all of it for what they'd had to put up with in the past twenty-four hours--battling monsters wasn't easy work--but Jayden would no doubt bore them with a lecture about honesty if she agreed with Demi. And it would be pretty hard to sneak the stuff back into the Academy without a teacher noticing and confiscating it.

She decided on a compromise. 'I think we've earned one piece of treasure, considering everything.'

'Fine,' Jayden conceded. 'Just _one_ piece, Demi.'

Demi clapped her hands together. 'Yay.' She lunged for a small gold chest that had a series of ornate patterns carved on it, and an antique padlock clasping it shut. 'I choose this one.'

_Of course_ , Hailey thought, staring at the chest. There was something alluring about it that made her think it was the only reasonable choice.

'Look, it even comes with a key,' Demi said, reaching for the gold key in the lock, which looked like the type of key that you'd expect to open a treasure chest.

'Don't even think about opening that.' Jayden smacked her hand away. 'I know you well enough to know if there's something disappointing inside, you'll toss it and start searching for something else.'

Demi rolled her eyes. 'Fine. I won't open it--yet. It's more suspenseful to wait anyway.'

'Now let's go,' Jayden said impatiently.

The second he turned his back to climb out of the nest, Demi reached down and grabbed a small silk pouch, tucking it into her shorts pocket. Hailey smirked. _What Jayden doesn 't know won't hurt him._

Everyone piled back onto the tree.

'Going down,' Demi said.

Hailey locked one arm around Rain and used the other one to grip the branch above her as the tree shrank. It wasn't until she was back on the ground and saw Kendra up and about that she let herself relax.

Kendra plucked Rain from Hailey's arms. 'Thank you so much for saving her.'

'I'm sorry about your head,' Hailey said, grimacing at the oozing gash on Kendra's forehead. 'I was trying to use my wind to catch you, but it pushed you into the cliff.'

'Don't apologise. You were trying to save me.'

Jayden shook his head in utter disbelief. 'I can't believe you're okay.'

'Neither can I.' Blood dripped from Kendra's torn shirt onto the honey-coloured sand, staining it red. 'I thought I was dead for sure when it knocked me off the cliff. It's lucky Alec is a lot stronger than he looks, or I wouldn't be here,' she said with an indebted smile at him.

Alec shifted uncomfortably under her and everyone else's stare. 'So, Hailey, I never knew how powerful you were. But I don't understand why you didn't shoot the griffin with a bolt of lightning before it hit Kendra.'

'If I'd known I could, I would have, but I've never been able to manipulate lightning before.' Hailey's eyes drifted to the smoking griffin.

An image of her dad lying on the ground with burned flesh burst into her mind. The memory pressed against her chest, constricting her breathing like a giant serpent trying to crush the life out of her. She flinched when someone touched her arm.

'Are you okay, Hails?' Demi asked. 'I hope you're not feeling guilty about killing the griffin, because you know it would have killed you and Jayden.'

Hailey banished the memory back to the dark part of her mind it had escaped from. 'We should get back to the palace.'

'I'd love to if it hadn't disappeared.' Demi slumped to the ground. 'We're marooned, remember?'

_Oh yeah_ , Hailey thought with a sinking heart. What were they going to do? They couldn't just march back into the forest and ask the dryads to watch over them until someone realised they were missing and came back for them--especially when that knoxen might be on the hunt again tonight.

'I think for now we need to head back and see if the others have come out of the forest,' Jayden said.

'I forgot about them.' Demi sprang to her feet. 'Let's go.'

Hailey had forgotten too. _There 's nothing like taking on a griffin to distract you from everything else_. She prayed to the Tyches they'd find Aaron, Kora, and Tahlia sitting on the beach, waiting for them with a good explanation as to why Hailey, Demi, Jayden, and Kendra hadn't bumped into them on their way out of the forest.

It seemed like wishful thinking, even to Hailey, but she couldn't let her mind think about the alternative: that something had dragged them off.

**18**

**Getting Home**

They trekked back down the beach in silence. Hailey was too exhausted to talk. Her adrenaline rush had worn off, and she could now feel how much energy causing that storm and lightning strike had drained. Her muscles ached with every step, making her feel as though she were hiking up a ninety-degree hill rather than across a flat beach. It was times like these she wished she had the power to dematerialise.

'I see them,' Alec said.

Hailey dragged her eyes from the sand. Aaron, Kora, and Tahlia were standing by the horses. She forgot about her non-existent energy and sprinted towards them with the intention of instigating a group hug. But she stopped when she got close enough to see the bleeding gashes covering them.

'What in Tartarus happened to you?!' Demi exclaimed.

'We could ask you the same thing,' Aaron said, looking at Jayden and Kendra's torn and bloody shirts.

Jayden regarded his injuries. 'This? This is nothing,' he said, waving a dismissive hand. 'And besides, we asked you first.'

Aaron plunked down on the sand. 'Okay, you win,' he said in a tired voice as Kora and Tahlia saw what Kendra was holding and darted forward to coo over Rain. 'When we went back into the forest after you, we got attacked by those sti--stem--those metal man-eating birds Madam Grayson taught us about.'

'Stymphalian birds?' Alec's eyes were wide.

'Yep, those ones. So anyways, as you probably remember, they're made of metal and can shoot their feathers like daggers.' Aaron touched a deep gash on his cheek and grimaced. 'They attacked us so fast we didn't have time to react until after they'd torn our skin to shreds. I managed to use my force field to hold most of them back, and Tahlia took care of the rest with her powers.'

It made sense now why Hailey hadn't run into them on her way out: Aaron and the others had run off the path when the birds had bombarded them.

'I can't believe Stymphalian birds attacked you.' Alec plopped down in front of Aaron. 'How did they attack? In pairs? Or as a group? Did you save any of the daggers?'

Aaron chucked a handful of sand at Alec's stomach. 'Not now, Alec. I'm too tired to answer your questions. And I want to hear what happened to them.' He looked pointedly at Hailey, Demi, and Jayden.

'Our story totally trumps yours,' Demi said with a boastful smile. She launched into the details about their sleepover in the forest, telling him and Alec about their encounter with the dryads, naiads, and knoxen before jumping to their battle with the griffin.

Alec's eyes were wide again. 'Dryads _and_ naiads. I can't believe I missed all of that. Although I'm glad I wasn't there for the knoxen. Did you know they kill by lying on their victims and crushing them--and that's after they've given them a few good gashes with their claws.'

'I wish you hadn't told me that.' Hailey shuddered at the thought of her bones shattering under the weight of the terrifying monster she'd barely survived last night.

'I know how to get us home,' Kendra announced.

'How?' Jayden asked.

'The sea-horses know how to find the palace.'

'What's everyone waiting for?' Demi said incredulously. 'Let's get the horses.'

Hailey and her friends mounted the horses, eager to get the Tartarus off the island before something else tried to kill them. She didn't bother looking back as the horses trotted into the sea. She never wanted to see this place again--or any other island, for that matter.

'They're about to dive,' Kendra warned.

Hailey tensed. She hadn't thought about the obvious fact that the horses would have to go under the water to get to the palace. She remembered Madam Grayson telling them the horses had the power to feed their riders oxygen underwater. But instinct told her that was impossible, which is why she took a great big gulping breath of air when her horse dove.

Hailey squinted when she went under, expecting the water to sting her eyes, but they felt fine. She opened them and was amazed to find she could see perfectly.

The first thing she noticed was that her horse had grown gills. The next thing was that she was dry. Hailey frowned down at her hands; the surrounding water was being repelled from her skin, like there was a magnetic field around her pushing the water back.

Her lungs burned, reminding her she was running out of air. Tentatively, she took a tiny breath. When no water rushed into her mouth, she took a bigger one, inhaling the salty air, which dispelled the burning in her chest. She took a few more cautious breaths before accepting she now had the ability to breathe underwater--at least while she was on the sea-horse--and took notice of her surroundings.

The sea was empty, more or less. There were no kaleidoscopic reefs, and only a few fish swam about, but they were the average kind that people preferred to eat rather than look at. The lack of sea-life made Hailey feel as though the sea-creatures had abandoned this area.

Instinctively, she glanced down, where an impenetrable blackness lurked a hundred feet beneath her. She shivered and clung more tightly to her horse's scaly neck as she imagined the sea-monster from her nightmares bursting from the darkness to eat her. After everything she'd been through, the last thing she wanted to do was take on another monster, especially in the sea where she could easily drown if it dragged her from her horse's back.

'Look!'

Demi's voice was perfectly audible under the water, and it broke Hailey from her sudden rush of fear. She loosened her grip on the horse's neck and straightened. A smile broke over her face when the palace came into view. As soon as they made it to the grounds, Hailey knew they'd be safe.

Of course she also knew expulsion waited for her when she got back. It was doubtful no one had noticed them, or the sea-horses, missing, considering how long they'd been gone. Her mum would be so angry with her when she got sent back home. She wouldn't be surprised if she decided to home-school her as punishment for messing up so badly.

As they neared the palace, Hailey expected to see a ring of teachers--and maybe the seniors--circling the grounds, waiting for them to return so they wouldn't have to send out a search party.

But the grounds were deserted.

_They 're probably waiting for us in the stable_, Hailey thought.

But the stable was empty too.

'I thought someone would've been waiting for us in here,' Hailey said, sliding from her horse. She peered in the stalls, thinking maybe whoever was supposed to be waiting for them to return to the crime scene had fallen asleep.

'Me too,' Jayden said, frowning.

'I guess we got away with it,' Demi chimed, hugging the gold chest she'd stolen under her arm.

'I better heal everyone's injuries before we leave the stable,' Kora suggested. 'I think bleeding stomach wounds and claw-marked skin might be a little hard to explain to Madam Mendem.'

'You don't have to worry about healing me,' Kendra said. 'I have to admit to going to the island.'

Demi looked at her as if she'd just said she was going for a swim with sea-serpents. 'Why?'

Kendra inclined her head to Rain, who nibbled on a piece of seaweed at her feet. 'Because I think the sudden appearance of a pegacorn living in Poseidon's stable might strike someone as suspicious.' She saw the anxious look everyone gave her. 'Don't worry, I won't mention you guys.'

'You don't have to go alone,' Hailey told her, scratching her horse between the ears as it nudged her with its head. 'I can come with you. I was the one who decided to go after you.' Hailey didn't want to get expelled, if she could avoid it, but she couldn't let Kendra take all the blame. It had been her idea to recruit her friends for a deadly mission rather than tell a teacher, after all.

'No, Hailey. You're not getting in trouble for what I did. If I'd listened to you when you'd told me not to go, you wouldn't have had to come after me. This was all my fault. Just promise me you'll take care of Rain when I'm gone.'

The obstinate look on Kendra's face told Hailey continuing to argue was pointless--and she really, _really_ , didn't want to get expelled. 'Of course I'll take care of her.'

Kora got to work on healing Jayden, Aaron, and Tahlia--and she even convinced Kendra to let her heal her stomach and head wound. Meanwhile, Hailey, Demi, and Alec put away the horses. It still seemed too fortunate to Hailey that they and the horses hadn't been missed, but what other explanation was there for why no search party had come after them? Or why no one had been waiting to bombard them when they'd returned?

_Blue skies_ , Hailey thought, just as someone said, 'I thought I heard voices.'

**19**

**The Chest**

Every hope Hailey had had of not getting expelled vanished.

Amathia loomed in the doorway, surveying each of them. Hailey tensed when her eyes shifted to her, expecting to find anger and reproach in them, but they shone with her usual warmness. _She 's probably waiting to get angry after she makes sure none of us are bleeding to death_, Hailey thought.

'I see we have a new addition to the palace,' Amathia remarked, reaching down to pet Rain before focusing her attention back on the eight of them. 'I'm interested to hear where you've been.' She glanced at Kora, who was covered in dried and oozing blood from the various wounds she'd absorbed. 'It was noble of you to heal your friends, Kora, but I think you have expended your powers enough for one day. Please go to the healing wing and let Madam Mendem take the injuries from you. Tahlia and Jayden, would you please assist her there. Everyone else, come with me.'

Amathia gracefully pivoted and left the stable.

Hailey shared an apprehensive glance with her friends before stalking after her. She sighed as they trudged down the hallway. This would be the last time she walked through the palace. After telling her she was expelled, Amathia would probably send her to her dorm to pack her things before giving her a travelling necklace and telling her to get out.

Amathia steered them into her classroom, where she settled behind her desk as the five of them slumped into chairs in front of her. Amathia leaned forward. 'I must admit, I was unaware of your absence until the early hours of this morning. I pride myself on knowing the happenings within the palace--especially the ones students don't want me knowing about--but I had an urgent matter to address yesterday, which distracted me from noticing your disappearance. For that I apologise. You should not have had to endure a night away from the palace. A rescue team should have been sent for you.'

Hailey's jaw dropped. _Did Amathia just apologise?_

'I know you are all fatigued, but it's important you tell me about where you have been for the past day. Who wishes to begin?'

'It all started with me,' Kendra said, giving Amathia a detailed explanation of everything that had happened, with Hailey and her friends telling their side of things once Kendra was finished.

Amathia didn't interrupt; she merely nodded thoughtfully as they spoke. She straightened in her chair when they finished. 'It appears you have all partaken in an epic adventure worthy of Homer. With that said, you should consider yourselves extremely fortunate to have survived the island.' Amathia paused, which served to increase the building tension in the room as she prepared to pass her verdict on them. 'I ask you never to do anything so foolish again while you're under my care here.'

Hailey gaped. Amathia wasn't kicking them out?

'You're not expelling us?' Demi dared to ask.

'How could I expel you for nobly risking your lives to save a friend? Yes, it was unwise to pursue Kendra instead of informing me or another teacher, but your intentions were good. And as for you, Kendra, I can understand why you felt the need to leave. I will make sure my sisters and I ride the hippocampi more so they don't feel trapped. Although it does concern me why you didn't think to speak with me about your concerns prior to endangering your life.'

'Because I didn't think you would let me go.'

'If you'd explained your feelings to me, I would have accompanied you--along with Madam Grayson.'

Kendra's features tightened with guilt, and she dropped her head. 'I'm sorry. I'll never do it again.'

Hailey couldn't believe they were actually getting away with what they'd done. She thought it was safe enough to ask the question that had been bugging her since that morning. 'Amathia, why did the palace go underwater a day before it was supposed to?'

A flicker of anger crossed Amathia's face. 'That was the incident that distracted me from your disappearance. My sisters are displeased with the arrangement of the palace rising once a week, so they took it upon themselves to descend it.'

'Oh,' Hailey replied, not knowing what else to say. Truthfully, she shouldn't have been surprised, considering how spiteful the nereids were, but them being responsible for marooning Hailey and her friends on the island had never crossed her mind.

'I assure you it will not happen again. And I hope you leaving the palace's grounds without permission will never happen again either.'

'I promise,' Hailey said, and so did everyone else.

Amathia rewarded them with one of her warm smiles. 'I'm pleased to hear that. Unfortunately, you must report to your overseer now, and I warn you, Madam Grayson is most displeased.'

Hailey was blissfully sleeping when someone shook her. She dragged her eyes open, finding Aaron staring down at her. 'Time to get up.'

She grudgingly sat up and rubbed her eyes. 'I've only been asleep for a minute.'

He cocked an eyebrow. 'Actually, it's the late afternoon.'

Hailey glanced at the clock; it was 5.10. She'd been asleep for nine hours! 'I didn't real--hey, what are you doing in here? Madam Grayson is angry enough with us. She'll kill you if she finds you in the girls' dorms.'

Madam Grayson had been as angry as a ravenous hydra when they'd reported to her in the common room. She'd given them a huge lecture about how irresponsible they'd been, and how they were lucky to be alive. They'd gotten detention for a week, and neutralising bracelets to wear for an entire month.

'We wanted to open the chest with you.' Aaron held up the gold chest Demi had pilfered from the griffin's nest. Thankfully, Demi had put it down when she'd been leading the sea-horses back to their stalls, so Amathia hadn't seen it. 'But if you're not interested...'

'No, we're interested,' the words came from Demi, who'd been fighting off Jayden's attempts to drag her out of bed.

Aaron smirked and set the chest on the empty floor between Hailey and Demi's desks; everyone gathered around it.

'So whose idea was the reconnaissance mission?' Hailey asked. She was surprised the boys had risked getting caught to go back for it.

'Believe it or not, it was Alec's,' Aaron said.

'Alec?' Hailey and Demi said at the same time. He was the last person Hailey would have guessed. If anything, she would have expected him to _tell_ Madam Grayson about it to avoid getting into any more trouble.

'Of course I wanted to go back for it.' Alec's voracious eyes locked on to the chest as he spoke. 'This chest was important enough to put in a griffin's nest, which means there's something very valuable inside, and I want to know what it is.' He reached for the antique key sitting in the lock, a tiny _click_ sounding as he twisted it.

With slightly shaking hands, he opened the lid, everyone leaning forward to see what wonders lay inside.

Hailey expected to see a pile of gold coins and maybe a few pearl necklaces--treasure, basically, considering they'd found the chest in a trove of riches. But what looked like a scroll was tucked inside. _A treasure map_ _perhaps?_

Alec delicately picked up the scroll and untied the string binding it with the precision of someone deactivating a bomb. As the string came loose, something slipped from inside the parchment.

Something that made everyone gasp.

'Is that a... a...' Aaron began, but he couldn't finish his sentence.

Hailey understood how he felt. She could have been given a hundred guesses about what was inside the chest, and she never would have come up with what was lying on the floor.

It looked a bit like a stick, being long and slender, but was made of black onyx. Its slightly pointed tip gleamed with the milky white and blue colours of a moonstone. Hailey picked it up, tracing her fingers over the gold symbols engraved on the polished stone. The symbols were all the same: a circle surrounding a labyrinth-like pattern that had a six-pointed spiral in its centre. Hailey recognised it as the strophalos--Hecate's wheel--which confirmed her guess about what the object was.

'It's a wand.'

No one said anything to contradict Hailey. Everyone just stared at the object like its existence was impossible. And, in a way, it was. Wands were rarer than rare. Hecate was the only god who could make them. It was said she'd only created three: one for herself, one for Hermes, and one for humankind.

As Hecate and Hermes would have died with their wands at Olympus, this wand had to be the latter. No one knew what had happened to the one Hecate had made for humankind. Legends had whispered about how certain people, such as Perseus and Alexander the Great, had gotten their hands on it and used it for their own means. But they were only legends. In truth, no one had ever seen the wand.

_Until now_.

'What's on the paper?' Demi broke the silence.

Alec looked surprised to find the scroll in his hand, but he quickly recovered and unfurled it. 'It says... be the peril past, the spell be uncast. Slumber no more, your powers I restore... Whoa!' Alec dropped the scroll. 'The words just changed to Goldarin.'

A woman's voice echoed around the dorm chanting, ' _Nat kiat zatokav znaek, kiat ezatvv nat utrsnaek. Evutwnato rda wdaoat, mdauto zdauatoe ka oatekdaoat_.'

A pulse shot through the wand, and Hailey dropped it in surprise. The strophalos symbols and moonstone glowed, and the wand shuddered, firing tremors through the floor.

The vibrations suddenly stopped, and the glowing symbols vanished. As they disappeared, one formed on the wand's moonstone tip.

'What in Tartarus was that?!' Aaron exclaimed.

Alec gulped. 'I think I just read a spell.'

**20**

**The Wand**

'A spell!' Aaron practically shouted. 'What kind of spell? And where did that voice come from?'

Alec hesitated. 'It sounded like an awakening spell. I'm not sure about the voice.'

'Who was it supposed to awaken?' Demi's eyes darted around the room. 'Please don't tell me it was the gods.'

'The gods are dead,' Jayden said indubitably.

'But the prophecy says they'll return,' Demi countered. 'What if we're the ones who reawaken them?'

Hailey's head spun, and her throat turned dry. No, they couldn't have woken up the gods. _They 're dead, like Jayden said. But what if they can come back? What if they left behind the spell and wand as a way to resurrect themselves?_

Alec set the scroll on the ground, beside the wand. 'I didn't wake up the gods, Demi,' he said in a slow even tone. 'Not even a wand can bring them back from death.'

'Then who was it for?' Hailey demanded, desperate to hear they hadn't just condemned the world to some unthinkable evil that everyone would look to her--the Zeus--to destroy.

Alec considered the question, glancing from the spell to the wand. His whole body relaxed as he realised something. 'The wand must've been put to sleep or something, that's why it was covered in Hecate's symbol. The spell was written to awaken its power, which is why the symbols glowed and disappeared. And the voice was probably pre-programmed into it for when someone read the spell, because the wand must only respond to Goldarin.'

Jayden scratched his head. 'Why would it be pre-programmed into it? Why wouldn't the spell just be written in Goldarin?'

'Because this wand was meant for humans, and back in the ancient times humans couldn't read or speak Goldarin.'

'But if it was meant for humans, wouldn't Hecate have created the wand to respond to English... or Greek--whatever humans spoke then?' Aaron asked.

'That's a good question.' Alec tapped his lip, thoughtful. 'Maybe the spell was also meant to give the reader the ability to speak Goldarin. But since I already know the language, it getting downloaded into my brain isn't noticeable to me. Anyway, the point is, we didn't wake anyone up, we merely awakened the wand's magic.'

Hailey thought about it for a second and relaxed too; it was a perfectly logical explanation. _Why else would the wand have glowed and vibrated like it was filling with power?_

_The gods aren 't coming back. They're dead._

'Well, in that case, I can't believe we found a wand!' Demi gushed, clapping her hands together. 'We can have anything we want--like a big screen TV, or a--'

'We're not keeping it,' Alec said before Demi could finish rattling off her list. 'We need to give it to Amathia.'

'No.' Hailey snatched the wand up before anyone could touch it; power shot up her arm like electricity and coursed through her veins. 'We might get into even more trouble for stealing from a griffin's nest,' she explained as four pairs of eyes narrowed at her.

'I'm with, Hails. It would be stupid to give the wand up,' Aaron said. 'We could use it to get back at Venus.'

'That's brilliant. I never even thought of that.' Demi's eyes gleamed with amusement as she got lost in whatever plans she was thinking of for tormenting Venus and the twins.

'I don't agree with revenge.' Jayden shot Demi and Aaron a censorious glance. 'But it could help us prevent Venus from bullying Uniques.'

'I don't know about this,' Alec said, carefully rolling the scroll back up and fastening it with the string. 'I really think we should give it to Amathia. And you all remember what happened the last time you didn't listen to me--we almost died on an island.' He nestled the scroll back in the gold chest.

Considering it had only just happened, Hailey remembered it pretty well. But she thought Alec was wrong in this case. She stood up, clutching the wand against her chest. She had a feeling if they took it to Amathia, she'd destroy it.

And finding a wand was a once in a lifetime kind of thing--or more like once in a million lifetimes. 'Sorry, Alec, but you're outvoted,' she said. 'I'm surprised you're so against us keeping it, especially when you were the one who risked going back for the chest. Isn't this something you'd like to show your dad?'

'Of course it is.' Alec craned his neck to look up at Hailey. 'But artefacts like that shouldn't be kept by one person. They should be put in a museum for everyone to see. And they _definitely_ shouldn't be used. I think a wand is too powerful to be unleashed on the world.'

Hailey scoffed. _What kind of person gives up a wand, and consequently the chance to have anything they want, so that a bunch of people can 'ooh' and 'ahh' over it in a museum? _Hailey and her friends were the ones who had risked their lives to get it, so it was only fair they should be the ones to keep it.

Movement on Demi's side of the dorm caught the corner of Hailey's eye. Demi saw it, too, and strode to her desk. Her face was ashen when she turned back around grasping a pile of letters. 'They're from my parents.'

Hailey stiffened. Amathia must've told their parents about their disappearance. She'd been too tired to even glance at her desk when Madam Grayson had finally finished yelling and let them go to their dorms. But looking over at her desk now, she could see her own pile of letters.

Her poor mum was probably having a heart attack worrying about where she was. 'I'll keep the wand safe until we deal with our parents.' She drifted towards her chest of drawers to hide the wand.

Jayden got to his feet with Alec and Aaron. 'Don't look so glum, Dems. Just think, our parents can't ground us while we're here.'

'That's right, they can't punish us until the holidays,' Aaron agreed. 'And that's a whole month and a half away, so maybe they'll forget all about it.'

Demi plunked down on her bed, still clutching the letters in her hands. 'I doubt it. You boys better go face your own letters.'

'I guess it's better to get it over with,' Aaron said, raising his shoulders and looking as if he were about to charge into battle. 'Don't use that wand until we can find a way to sneak back here,' he instructed Hailey, and nudged the gold chest under her bed with his foot. 'Come on, Alec.'

Alec didn't move. He stood in the centre of the dorm, staring at the drawer Hailey had hidden the wand in. She stepped in front of it, ready to fight him off if he lunged.

But Alec didn't make a move for the wand. Instead, he narrowed his eyes at Hailey as if he'd never seen her before. Aaron put a hand on his shoulder and steered him from the dorm.

The materialisation of another letter, this time on her desk, distracted Hailey from thinking about why Alec was being weird. She trudged over to her desk, where four letters addressed in her mum's handwriting waited--she could practically feel the tension and panic coming off them. _No point delaying the inevitable_ , she thought with a sigh, sitting down.

She picked up the letter with the least furious-looking writing and opened it.

_Hailey,_

_Where are you? The school says you 've disappeared, and it's almost dark._

_I don 't know what to do. They won't tell me where Poseidon's Academy is, so I can't come and look for you myself._

_I hope you 're only lost in the palace. When you get this letter, please write back to me STRAIGHT AWAY!!! Before I have a panic attack, which I'm on the verges of!_

_Please be all right!_

_Love Mum_

Guilt pulsed through Hailey's heart as she imagined how distressed her mum would have been when she was told her daughter was missing. She felt even worse when she thought about how much more freaked out her mum would have been _after_ Amathia told her where Hailey had spent the last twenty-four hours.

She'd probably be grounded for the rest of her life--providing her mum didn't kill her first.

The next two letters matched the first one, with her mum pleading for Hailey to tell her where she was and what she should do. Hesitantly, she opened the last one, preparing herself for the disappointment and anger she knew would be waiting inside.

_Hailey,_

_The school told me they 've found you. You have no idea how relieved I am. I was up all night worrying about you. I even went to the beach thinking I might spot the palace._

_Amathia didn 't tell me what happened to you. She said it was best to hear it from you. All she told me was they found you this morning, unharmed, which is all that matters to me._

_As soon as you get this letter, write back to me so I know you 're safe. I've got half a mind to pull you from that school for losing you._

_Please write back quickly!_

_Love Mum_

'What were your letters like?' Demi asked from her bed, letters and ripped open envelopes scattered around her.

Hailey twisted in her chair to face her. 'Mum was just really worried. Amathia didn't tell her what we did.'

'Yeah, same with my parents.' Demi sighed. 'Now I have to tell them about it myself. What am I supposed to say? "Dear Mum and Dad, I went on a rescue mission to an island, which I have decided to dub Killer Island because I almost died about a dozen times." That'll go down really well with them.'

Hailey thought about what she should do. By not telling her mum what had happened, Amathia had given her the perfect opportunity to lie. But she couldn't bring herself to do that to her mum. Of course Demi had a good point about their adventure not being something you told someone through a letter.

'I think I'll just tell my mum I'm okay, and that I'll tell her what happened when I go home for the holidays. That way she'll get to yell at me in person--I also like your name for the island,' Hailey added, thinking Killer Island suited it perfectly, considering how many monsters had attacked them.

Demi perked up. 'Great idea, Hails. It'll delay the freaking out and lecturing.'

Hailey perched on the edge of her bed, staring at the drawer the wand was in. She tapped her fingers against her mattress, resisting the urge to snatch it out. She'd promised not to touch it until Jayden, Alec, and Aaron could sneak back into their dorm.

But she couldn't wait.

She needed to hold it.

To use its magic.

She glanced over to make sure Demi, who had decided to take another nap, was still asleep before yanking open the drawer. She sifted through her clothes until she found the wand. Power pulsed into her from the onyx, filling her like electricity, begging her to use it. _But what would she use it on?_ Her eyes landed on the closed window.

Hailey flicked the wand at the window and said, 'Open.'

Nothing happened.

She flicked the wand again. 'Open.'

The window remained shut.

She smacked her hand against her head. 'Of course, it only responds to Goldarin. _Dazatr_.'

The wand's moonstone tip glowed, the shades of blue in it shimmering, and the crystal doors flew open.

Hailey was grateful Amathia had made it compulsory for all first years to study the language of the gods; otherwise, the wand would have been useless to her.

'Hailey? What are you doing? Is that the wand?'

Hailey reeled around. Demi was awake and sitting up. 'It's incredible, Dems.'

Hailey expected her best friend to leap out of bed, proclaiming it her turn. Instead, she regarded Hailey with the same uneasy look Alec had. 'Are you feeling okay? You seem kind of... different.'

Hailey moved towards Demi. The only way she would understand what Hailey was talking about was if she touched the wand. 'Here. Take it.' She offered it to her. 'But you have to speak in Goldarin.'

'Well, I suppose I deserve to have some fun with it. I _am_ the one who stole it after all.'

The power coursing through Hailey cut off like a switch being flicked when Demi took the wand. She flicked it at her polished coral desk, speaking the Goldarin words to change it from white to purple.

'This is so cool!' she squealed, changing the desk back. 'We have to tell the boys.'

'They're probably in the common room.'

Demi pocketed the wand, and she and Hailey headed to the common room, where they found Jayden, Alec, and Aaron hiding in one of the corners on the casual half of the room, just behind an armchair.

'We were just discussing how to get back into your dorm,' Aaron said when Hailey and Demi joined them on the ground, sitting down on the sea-sponge floor cushions.

'What's with the smile?' Jayden asked Demi, who was having a hard time containing her glee. 'Did your parents not give you as much grief as you thought they would?'

Demi leaned towards the boys. 'We tried out the wand.'

'You were meant to wait until we were all together,' Aaron griped, looking annoyed.

'We got tired of waiting,' Demi said dismissively. 'Here, it's your turn.' She un-pocketed the wand and held it out to him.

'Not here, Demi,' Jayden snapped. 'Someone might see.'

Demi's eyes gleamed with an idea. ' _Sdarsatnav_ ,' she said, whirling the wand around the five of them.

A chill spread through Hailey's body, like someone had just injected ice water into her veins. 'Demi, what did you do?'

Demi grinned. 'Dah, I made us invisible, so we don't have to worry about anyone seeing the wand.'

Alec was horrified. 'Demi, you shouldn't be using the wand. We need to give it to Amathia before it hurts someone.'

'Shut up, Alec,' Aaron said. 'I want to see if the spell worked.' He strolled over to a boy heading towards one of the armchairs. 'Hey, can you see me?'

The boy turned towards Aaron, frowning. Hailey thought the spell hadn't worked, but then the boy shrugged and walked off, as if he'd decided he'd been hearing things.

Aaron moseyed back over to them and sat down. 'I think it's safe to say it worked.' He grabbed the wand off Demi.

'Don't do it,' Jayden's voice admonished.

Aaron smirked impishly. Hailey followed his gaze to Venus, Nerissa, and Cleo, who were sitting on the sofa in front of the fireplace, painting their nails.

' _Gnarkaei_.'

The sofa the three girls were on vanished, sending them thumping to the floor and spilling their magenta nail polish all over the white pearls. Venus was stunned for a second, and then sprang to her feet, glaring at the laughing first years with eyes of pure fury. 'That wasn't funny! If any of you ever use your powers on me again, you'll regret it!' She stormed off with the twins.

Hailey could barely breathe she was laughing so hard.

'Give me that.' Jayden snatched the wand from Aaron's hands with a reproachful shake of his head. His eyes widened for a split second before he joined in their laughter. 'It _was_ pretty funny.'

Alec was the only serious one now. He was staring at them with such consternation that Hailey wondered if they'd suddenly grown a pair of fangs. 'There's something wrong,' he said. 'The wand is doing something to you. I'm going to get Amathia.'

Hailey and Aaron grabbed Alec before he could stand up. The wand was theirs. And no one was going to take it from them.

'I think you need to hold the wand, Alec.' Demi plucked the wand from Jayden's hand and shoved it into Alec's before he could protest.

Alec stiffened, his breath hitching. 'You're right. We can't give the wand to Amathia. We need to keep it for ourselves.'

**21**

**Fun and Games**

The next hour consisted of them arguing about who got to use the wand first, and what they should do with it. In the end, they all agreed they should only use it when they were together, and the best thing to use it for was paying Venus back for all the cruel things she'd done.

They were in the middle of devising a plan against her when Kora, Tahlia, and Kendra called out their names. Demi swished the wand around to make everyone visible and waved them over.

Hailey considered telling them about the wand, since they'd been on the island, too, but she didn't want to share it. And she didn't know if she could trust them not to tell other people about it.

_The wand needs to be protected by keeping it a secret._

'We've got detention,' Kendra said.

Hailey sighed along with her friends. Reluctantly, they reported to Madam Grayson in the Monsters and Creatures classroom. 'Since you like spending time with the sea-horses so much, I think you can spend your first detention cleaning their stable,' she said, disapproval clear on her face as she marched them out of the classroom.

Demi reached into her pocket and leaned towards Hailey as they trudged after Madam Grayson down the hallway, towards the stairs. 'I've got the wand. We can use it to help us clean the stable,' she whispered.

Hailey was tempted, but a wand being whipped out would raise questions from Kora, Tahlia, and Kendra. She shook her head. 'Not with them here.' She jerked her head towards the three girls, who were a few steps in front of them. 'Don't worry, the floors are self-cleaning, remember? So we won't have to shovel horse manure.'

'I need a chocolate sundae,' Kora announced when they all shuffled into the entryway twenty minutes later, covered in bits of dried seaweed and smelling like salt. 'Anyone wanna join?'

'Yes, I definitely--' Demi started.

'No,' Jayden cut her off. 'We've got some stuff to do back upstairs.'

'Your loss.' Kora shrugged and headed between the stairs.

'See you later,' Tahlia said, following behind her with Kendra.

Demi rounded on Jayden. 'What was that? I want a sundae.'

'It can wait,' Jayden told her.

'Yeah, it's time for phase one,' Aaron added.

'Oh, right.' Demi grinned.

'Looks clear,' Alec said, scanning the stairs to make sure no one was on their way down.

Demi whipped out the wand and whirled it around them. ' _Sdarsatnav_.'

Hailey shivered against the icy chill that swarmed her body.

'Let's go,' Aaron said, taking the lead up the stairs.

A sly smile crept over Hailey's face as she ascended the stairs. Venus had been getting away with making the Uniques' lives a living Tartarus since the beginning of the year, but Hailey was about to ensure that she didn't get away with it anymore.

She and her friends ambled into the common room, where they carefully manoeuvred their way through students, dodging and diving out of the way to avoid running into anyone, before finally making it into the girls' dorms.

'No one's screaming, so I guess that means the invisibility spell is working,' Jayden remarked.

'The wand would never let us down,' Demi proclaimed, kissing its moonstone tip.

'Come on, let's find her dorm,' Hailey said, scanning doors for Venus's name.

'It's down here,' Demi announced a minute later. She was peering at the last door on the right.

Hailey scurried over to her with the boys and glanced at the name on the door. Apparently, Venus didn't like the calligraphy everyone else's names had been inscribed in, because her name, Venus Montgomery, was emblazoned in sparkling blue diamonds.

'Who does she think she is, a princess?' Aaron muttered under his breath before opening the door.

Hailey scooted inside, the sugary scent of pink bubble gum engulfing her, and froze. She'd expected Venus to have the same dorm as everyone else: two beds, two desks, two side tables, and two chests of drawers. But thinking about it now, she realised what a ridiculous thought it had been.

In addition to those items, Venus had a scallop-shell spa crowded with beauty products, which ranged from chocolate-scented shampoo to Black Sea mud masks.

But what surprised Hailey the most were the glamour shots lining the walls, where Venus had been touched-up to look like a barbie doll, with red lips, fake eyelashes, and even a spray tan.

Aaron made a strangled sound, which caught the attention of Venus, who was sitting at her desk in a high-backed chair that looked like a throne-- _guess she didn 't approve of her scallop-shell chair_. It made Hailey think that maybe she was a princess, especially when she spotted the glittery tiaras and crowns adorning her desk.

But if Venus was royalty, Hailey was certain she would have made sure everyone knew it by acting a lot more imperious than she already did--if such a thing were possible.

_If she 's not a princess, what's with the tiaras and crowns?_ Hailey worked out the answer and let out the same choked sound Aaron had as she tried not to laugh at the fact Venus competed in beauty pageants. She was an Aphrodite; she was literally born one of the most beautiful people in the world--entering beauty pageants was cheating in Hailey's mind.

'Who's there?' Venus demanded, marching towards the door. She peered into the hallway before slamming the door with an irritated huff.

Aaron positioned himself beside Venus's desk and threw a stack of pink paper into the air when she spun around.

Venus sucked in a breath, her features contorting in fear for a second before turning hostile. 'I said if anyone used their powers on me again, they'd regret it. So whoever you are, you better get out of here before I get _really_ angry.'

Hailey smiled with an idea when she noticed Venus was standing on a fluffy white rug. Demi was way ahead of her, already yanking it out from under Venus.

'Ouch,' Venus yelped, hitting the ground.

It proved too much for Aaron and Demi, who burst into laughter. Alec signalled them to be quiet, but Venus was the one to silence them yelling, 'Show yourselves, cowards!' Her eyes combed the dorm, passing over Hailey and her friends.

Hailey decided they'd put Venus through enough--for now--and it was time to do something nice for her, like re-decorate. She plucked the wand from Demi's hand and whispered, ' _Sinarlat kda nvnast_.' She swished the wand around the dorm, changing the white furniture to black so it matched Venus's heart.

Venus paled, her brave façade dissolving as she scrambled to her feet and bolted from the dorm.

Hailey couldn't contain her laughter anymore; she let it encompass the room along with her friends'. _Justice had been served._ But it wasn't over yet. She had no doubt Venus was knocking on Madam Grayson's door right now, getting ready to tell her how an invisible person had attacked her. Hailey didn't want to leave any evidence that could give credibility to her story.

'Quickly, tidy everything up,' she instructed her friends before changing the furniture back to white.

The boys stopped laughing and caught on to her plan. They knelt down and collected the scattered papers.

'How in Tartarus did she get a spa in here?' Demi asked, sniffing the strawberry body souffle resting on the spa's edge. 'Not to mention that throne.'

'Conjuring furniture,' Alec explained, picking up a small rectangular remote control from her desk. It had a button on it and a picture of the same high-backed chair Venus had. Alec pressed the button, and the chair vanished. He pressed the button again, the chair popping back into existence.

'We need to go!' Hailey hissed.

They slipped out the door and spotted Madam Grayson, Venus, Nerissa, and Cleo heading towards them.

'I told you, Venus, there's no one at Poseidon's Academy with invisibility,' Madam Grayson said.

'There has to be, and you'll see that, too, when we get to my destroyed dormitory.'

Hailey squeezed past them and snickered, imagining Venus's face when she found her dorm in perfect order. With any luck, Madam Grayson would give her a detention for wasting her time.

_Blue skies._

Sunday arrived, bringing the end of Hailey's detentions. She was relieved, to say the least. They'd gotten progressively worse each day, with Madam Grayson making them scrub every pearl in the entryway's floor yesterday.

Hailey stepped into the grounds and automatically glanced at the sky. She lifted a hand towards it, the gold neutralising bracelet on her wrist sliding a few inches down her arm. Her heart clenched when no warmth flowed into her fingers, and, with a sigh, she dropped her hand, feeling as though she'd been banished from her own little world. It was ironic that when she had her powers she didn't want them, but when she couldn't use them she missed them.

It wasn't as if she needed her powers to manipulate the sky though. Hailey reached into her shorts pocket and pulled out the wand; a euphoric rush of power surged into her, making her feel as though she could do anything--walk on water, fly, even march into Madam Grayson's dorm and tell her she wasn't doing any more homework for Monsters and Creatures.

It was early enough on a weekend that the grounds were deserted, so she didn't bother casting an invisibility spell. She pointed the wand at the sky. ' _Sinarlat kda_ _zkart. Sinarlat kda zutozvat_.' She puffed up when the sky turned pink and the clouds purple. It appeared the wand made her a more powerful Zeus than her powers did.

She aimed the wand at herself. It was time to find out if it could make her live up to everyone's expectations by giving her the ability to shoot lightning from her hands.

'I saw that.'

Hailey whirled around, scrambling to hide the wand behind her back. 'Aaron.' She exhaled in relief. 'You scared me.'

He saw the wand and gave her a censorious look worthy of Jayden's praise. 'You shouldn't be using that so publically, especially for something as obvious as changing the sky's colour.'

'I know. I'm sorry.' Hailey changed the sky and clouds back, and shoved the wand into her pocket, feeling the power rush that had swarmed her fizzle out. 'What are you doing out here so early?'

Aaron stiffened and balled his hands into fists.

Hailey followed his gaze. Venus and the twins, it appeared, had decided to get up early for a little bullying. They, along with three spellbound boys, were chasing a girl with bright red fly-away hair out of the palace.

'Stop. I want to help you,' Venus called after her.

The girl spun around. 'How?'

Venus's face gleamed with malice. 'By putting that fire out for you.' She nodded to one of the spellbound boys.

A stream of water shot from his fingertips, saturating the girl, whose red hair faded to mousy brown. The dull colour emphasised her plain features, and Hailey recognised her as Cady: a Unique who could change the colour of anything--including herself.

Rage pulsed through Hailey as she watched Cady run away in tears. It seemed the lesson they'd given Venus last weekend had worn off.

_Time for a refresher._

Hailey grabbed Aaron with one hand to stop him from storming over to Venus and the twins, and reached into her pocket with the other. The wand's power consumed her again as she aimed it at Venus. ' _Akaat! '_

A jet of fire blasted from the wand's moonstone tip and hit Venus with such force, it sent her flying backwards as a fiery hole burned through her chest.

Hailey gasped and dropped the wand.

_What have I done?!_

**22**

**Spying**

'Hailey.' Hailey opened her eyes--when had she closed them?--and looked at Aaron. 'Are you okay?'

She'd just killed someone. Of course she wasn't okay.

Her stomach heaved, and she leaned forward to throw up, but paused when she heard Venus laugh. She glanced past Aaron and saw her standing with the twins near the palace's entrance. _She 's alive. But how? _Hailey instinctively looked at the wand lying on the ground, and suddenly realised it had sent her a vision. The wand had _wanted_ her to use it to kill Venus.

Its power called to her now, urging her to pick up the wand. To use it. To kill. She didn't dare reach for it. Hailey might despise Venus, but that didn't mean she wanted her dead.

'I'll get it.' Aaron grabbed the wand before Hailey could stop him. She froze as he aimed it and said, ' _Onakar_.'

Venus and the twins screamed.

But not because Aaron had sent a death spell at them. They were screaming because the patch of sky above their heads was dropping an onslaught of rain onto them.

'Hailey, what's the matter with you?' Aaron asked as Venus and the twins fled into the palace for cover. 'You look as if you've seen a shade.'

She pulled herself together. 'Give me the wand.' Aaron cocked an eyebrow, but he handed it to her. She flinched when he placed it in her outstretched hand, expecting it to possess her again with images of what it wanted her to do. She blew out a breath when nothing happened and shoved the wand into her pocket. 'We can't use it anymore.'

'What are you talking about? It's the only thing that can help us get revenge on Venus while our powers are gone.'

Hailey had happily used it for that exact reason since they'd found it, but she couldn't trust the wand anymore--not after what had just happened. And she wasn't going to risk her, or her friends', freewill by continuing to use it.

She explained to Aaron what the wand had shown her.

'I'll be right back with the others,' Aaron said and ran off into the palace.

Hailey sank to the ground, next to an aquamarine tree. The wand pressed against her leg and she tensed, waiting for it to possess her and force her to embark on a killing rampage. How many people would it compel her to murder before letting her go, or someone else killed her? She shuddered at the thought and was grateful for a distraction when her friends came hurrying towards her fifteen minutes later. She told them what she'd told Aaron.

Demi laughed. 'Is that it? You think we should stop using the wand because you had a vision you killed Venus? You were angry, Hails. Your mind was probably showing you what you really wanted to do to Venus. It had nothing to do with the wand.'

'Demi might be right about it being in your mind,' Jayden said. 'You sounded pretty angry.'

'I don't think my anger could have transported me into a vision so real it made me think I'd _actually_ killed Venus,' Hailey retorted. 'It was the wand. It's dangerous.'

'I told you wands are dangerous,' Alec said. 'The power they're infused with is said to be so strong it can take on a life of its own.'

Demi snorted. 'It's a wand, Alec--an inanimate object.' She fixed her gaze on Hailey. 'So are you saying we should give the wand to Amathia?'

'No,' Hailey said so suddenly she surprised herself. _The wand needs to be protected_. 'I just don't think we should use it anymore, that's all.'

Demi crossed her arms. 'But we've barely done anything with it.'

'I think you might be overreacting a little bit, Hailey,' Jayden said in a measured voice.

'She's not,' Aaron said. 'I saw her face when it happened. She was terrified. We're not using the wand anymore, unless it's an emergency.'

'But I--' Demi began to argue.

'What are _they_ doing out here?' Jayden asked, cutting her off.

The nereids were sashaying towards the grounds' edge. Hailey watched them jump into the sea, not making so much as a splash before they vanished, becoming one with the water like the naiads had on Killer Island. Hailey suddenly remembered Amathia saying they'd been the ones to lower the palace early. Hailey hadn't given it a second thought at the time, but it seemed like a big coincidence that at the exact time the nereids had lowered the palace, Hailey and her friends had been fighting for their lives on the island.

The realisation of what the nereids had done hit Hailey like a cyclops's club, deepening her hate for them. 'I know why the palace lowered while we were on Killer Island.'

Jayden raised an eyebrow. 'We already know why. Amathia said it was because the nereids wanted it back underwater.'

'But the palace has been rising from the sea since the beginning of the year, and they've never lowered it before,' she pointed out. 'Doesn't it seem like too much of a coincidence that the same weekend we weren't here they chose to lower it?'

Alec smacked himself on the forehead. 'Of course. I don't know why I didn't see it before. The nereids knew we were on the island, didn't they?'

Hailey nodded. 'Yeah. They probably went to take the sea-horses for a ride, and when they saw they were gone, they figured they'd try to lessen the number of students by lowering the palace and stranding us.'

Apparently, the nereids weren't as harmless as Jayden had convinced everyone. They might not have made an attempt against the whole school, like Nemertes had threatened, but getting rid of Hailey and her friends would have shown Amathia they weren't bluffing.

'I thought Amathia was making sure they didn't get up to anything,' Alec said, a slight glint of disappointment in his eyes, like Amathia had let him down.

Aaron pitched an aquamarine towards where the nereids had vanished, the gem slipping over the grounds' edge and sinking. 'Well, she's not doing a very good job.'

'She can't exactly watch them twenty-four seven.' Jayden defended Amathia. 'She does have a school to run as well.'

Demi shot him an accusatory look. 'Wasn't it you who said the nereids were bluffing about their threats?'

Jayden shrugged. 'I thought they were. But Hailey's right about everything being too much of a coincidence. I still don't think they'll start killing off students though. I just think they saw an opportunity to get rid of some and took it.'

'Either way, we're not leaving all the watching up to Amathia,' Aaron said. 'It's time we helped her and made sure they're really not up to anything.'

'We've had this discussion before,' Demi reminded him. 'It's kind of impossible to spy on someone you never see, and who might kill you if they catch you.'

'What if they couldn't see us?'

'What do you mean, Alec?' Aaron asked.

Alec looked at Hailey apologetically. 'I know you said you don't want to use the wand anymore. But I think it's the only way we can spy on the nereids.'

Hailey opened her mouth to argue, but Aaron cut her off. 'I get that you're worried about what the wand could do, but I don't think it's powerful enough to control any of us, or it would have already. You managed to drop the wand before it did anything, and I didn't have any visions when I picked it up. I think it was just responding to your anger.'

Hailey had to admit that Aaron had a point. If the wand was capable of possession, it would have taken her over the first time she'd touched it, and it wouldn't have let her drop it after she'd had the vision of killing Venus. Maybe it had been her anger. Regardless, the wand was the only way to find out what the nereids were up to; their only choice was to use it.

'Okay,' Hailey said after a long pause. 'We can use the wand to spy on them. But _nothing_ else.' She emphasised the last part especially to Demi, who pouted.

About two hours passed before the nereids climbed back through the force field, not a single drop of water clinging to them as they sauntered back towards the stable's doors.

'Give me the wand, Hailey,' Aaron said, holding his hand out. 'I'm going to follow them and see if they let anything about their plans slip.'

'No,' Hailey said. 'I'll go.' She wasn't letting her friends anywhere near the wand until she knew it wasn't dangerous. Reluctantly, she dragged it from her pocket and relaxed slightly when no images of killing Venus flashed into her mind. But the rush of pure power that surged through her made her stomach quiver. _Has it always felt this powerful? Or has its power being growing?_ she wondered.

'Are you sure you want to go, Hailey?' Jayden asked.

'Yeah, because you don't look happy about it,' Demi added.

'I'm going.' Hailey's voice was absolute. She'd never forgive herself if the wand hurt her friends. She glanced around to make sure none of the other students in the grounds were looking, and then aimed the wand's moonstone tip at herself. ' _Sdarsatnav_.' She shivered as what felt like freezing water spread through her body.

'Good luck,' Alec called after her as Hailey started towards the palace.

_I 'm in control, everything is fine_, she told herself, dodging around students wandering from the palace's entrance. _Or not!_ Hailey froze in the entryway.

Venus, Nerissa, and Cleo were standing by the glass statue of Poseidon.

Hailey went to drop the wand, afraid it might make her kill them, but stopped when no gory vision of their deaths rushed into her mind, and no strong urge to obliterate them possessed her.

'I'm bored,' Venus whined, staring at her pink nails.

'We could have a bit of fun with some Others,' Nerissa suggested.

'Yeah, like the one from this morning,' Cleo agreed.

'Hmm, I wonder where that chameleon girl is hiding now,' Venus said, a dark smile touching her red lips.

Hailey glared and decided it was time to get Venus and Nerissa back for bumping into her on Poseidon's Island and in the healing wing. She rammed through the middle of them, suppressing a laugh when they stumbled to the ground.

'I'm going to kill you!' Venus shrieked, staggering back to her feet. Hailey bit back a laugh, watching her and the twins kick and punch the air around them before Venus let out a frustrated cry. 'When I find out who you are, you're dead!' she yelled before storming up the crystal staircase with the twins.

Hailey snickered and strode through the left archway. She was starting to feel more comfortable about using the wand. Comfortable enough that she decided if it kept behaving itself, she would reinstate its use in getting even with Venus. But right now, she needed to focus on finding the nereids and hope they were stupid enough to be talking about whatever they were planning.

The only problem was Hailey had no idea where their room was. She thought maybe it was near Amathia's classroom, so she decided heading there was a good place to start.

She paused outside the Ancient History room. _Where to now?_ She had two hallways to choose from. One led towards the stable, and the other she'd never been down before. She decided the latter was a good choice, and snuck down it, continuing to guess her way through a few more hallways until she became completely lost.

Hailey stared at three new hallways, each identical to one another. 'This is impossible,' she declared, throwing her arms up.

It was stupid to think she could magically find the nereids' room by guessing. Now she was stuck in some forbidden part of the palace with no idea how to get back to the entryway. At least she had the wand, so she could zap herself back to her dormitory.

Hailey pulled the wand from her pocket and an idea struck her. 'I wonder,' she mused and shrugged, thinking she had nothing to lose. She aimed the wand at the pearl floor. ' _Eidau wat kda kiat_ nereids.'

Silver sparkling footprints materialised, leading down the middle hallway. _Blue skies_ , Hailey thought, following the footprints. They led her to a mother-of-pearl door in the deepest parts of the palace.

She approached the door with a mixture of excitement and apprehension. Excitement because she'd found the nereids' room, and apprehension because the nereids were so close. _I 'm invisible; they can't see me_, she reminded herself, pressing her ear against the cold mother-of-pearl door.

Hailey cursed and stepped back. All she could hear was mumbling. She pointed the wand at the door and whispered, ' _Vkaekatr_.'

She leaned her ear against the smooth mother-of-pearl again. This time the nereids' voices were so clear, it was as if Hailey was standing in the room with them.

'I don't feel it a wise plan. I believe we should focus our attention elsewhere. You know he won't be pleased to learn of this when he returns.'

'I agree with Nesso. We should find another way.'

'No, Maera. We must follow through with the plan. It will not be long now.' Hailey recognised Nemertes's voice.

'Are you certain it's worked?'

'Yes, Pherusa, they have it. We must be patient while they learn its purpose,' Nemertes replied calmly.

'We have been patient for centuries, sister.'

'I know, Nesaea. But we must wait a few more full moons.'

'And then what?' another voice asked.

'Then we cull the rest, Ligea. Come, let us speak to our sister once more and see if we can sway her towards abolishing this school.'

Hailey backed away from the door and muttered, ' _Gnarkaei_ ,' flicking the wand at the footprints.

The footprints disappeared as Nemertes, accompanied by five other nereids, slithered into the hallway. Hailey stiffened and squeezed her eyes shut. _Please stay invisible. Please stay invisible._

Silence pressed against her, and she imagined Nemertes standing in front of her with the other nereids, each of them wearing matching venomous glares that promised Hailey would never get to tell anyone what she'd heard.

She couldn't stand the tension anymore. She scrunched one eye open and exhaled a long breath. The nereids weren't surrounding her. She whirled around in time to see them disappear down another hallway. _Seriously, how do they not make sound when they walk?_

* * *

'Learn its purpose? What is that supposed to mean?' Aaron asked, leaning against Demi's bed.

Hailey shrugged. 'I've no idea. But I think it's clear they're up to something.'

'Maybe we should tell Amathia,' Alec suggested.

Demi rolled her eyes. 'When are you going to stop with the tell-a-teacher stuff? Haven't we corrupted that goodie-goodie behaviour out of you yet?'

Alec blushed. 'I just think we tend to get into more trouble when we don't tell a teacher, that's all.'

'We can't tell a teacher,' Jayden argued. 'That would mean admitting we have the wand. We need to work out what they're up to ourselves.'

'Jayden's right,' Hailey said, feeling pretty certain that Amathia wouldn't believe she'd "accidentally" overheard the nereids talking. She pulled the wand from her pocket and tossed it to Demi. 'You're playing spy tomorrow--but it's only for spying,' she added before her best friend could get any ideas, like giving Venus acne.

Demi dropped the wand into her lap and muttered, 'Killjoy.'

'I guess you're right,' Alec sighed.

Aaron punched him playfully on the shoulder. 'Don't worry, Alec, I won't let the evil nereids get you.'

**23**

**June Holidays**

Hailey's eyes flew open. She sucked in a breath and shot up in bed, cursing when she headbutted the person looming over her.

'Ouch, Hailey.'

' _Vkalike_ ,' Hailey said, the crystal orb floating beneath the ceiling flaring to life. Demi stood beside her, rubbing her forehead. 'Sorry. I didn't realise it was you shaking me,' Hailey said, tentatively touching her own throbbing head.

'Well, I thought you'd get angry if I woke you up by turning on the light,' Demi countered, dropping her hand to reveal a red mark above her eyebrow. 'I'll remember that's the safer option next time.'

'So why'd you wake me up? Did you forget to do your Creative Arts homework again?'

Demi's face lit up. 'It's been a month since we left Killer Island, and it's midnight. Our neutralising bracelets are off!'

Hailey glanced at Demi's bracelet-free wrist and then stared down at her own, where her neutralising bracelet dangled loosely. She shook it off, warmth rushing into her fingertips like the stretching beams of a sun.

'What are you waiting for?' Demi lingered at the door, staring back at her like Hailey had been touched by a spirit of madness.

Hailey frowned. 'What do you mean?' She suddenly noticed that Demi was dressed in shorts and a singlet. 'Where are you going?'

'To use my powers. Dah. Come on, hurry up and get dressed.'

Hailey quickly threw some clothes on and trailed Demi downstairs. She drifted into the grounds and froze. She'd never been there at night before, and was shocked to find it looked exactly like it did in her nightmare, with fluorescent coral and sea-anemones casting a pink, blue, green, and purple glow over the grounds. Her eyes darted to the sea, and she relaxed when she saw the palace was above water--no sea-monster would be drowning her tonight.

'Hailey, why aren't you blowing some wind around or something? Don't you want to use your powers?' Demi stood under a pearl tree that had tripled in size.

Hailey pushed away all thoughts of her nightmare. She gazed at the sky and smiled at the sparkling stars, feeling the cold nip of a breeze against her skin. Only a few clouds were hanging around, which she cast away with a swipe of her hand.

'Huh. Look what I found in my pocket.' Demi was clutching a small silk pouch.

'What is it?' Hailey asked, moving to get a closer look.

'It's the bag I stole from the griffin's nest. I forgot all about it. Let's see what's inside.' Demi pulled the thin tasselled rope tied around the top of the pouch loose and tipped the bag's contents into her hand.

Hailey expected something treasurey to fall out--like gold coins or a diamond bracelet. Instead, two gold seeds slipped from the pouch. Hailey frowned. 'Is that it?'

Demi shook the bag and then tossed it. 'Guess so.' She brushed her fingers over the bean-shaped seeds. 'I bet they grow something magical--like a jewel tree.'

'Um, Demi, we're surrounded by jewel trees.'

'Which we're not allowed to pick from. But if we had one in our backyards, they'd come in pretty handy.' She placed a seed on the diamond ground and raised her palm over it.

Hailey leaned forward and waited to see what magical plant would grow.

But the seed remained a seed.

Demi frowned. 'That's weird. My powers have never not worked before. They're probably still messed up from the neutralising bracelet. Let me try again.' As Demi placed her hand back over the seed, it vanished.

Hailey blinked. 'Where'd it go?'

'I don't know.' Demi stared at the empty ground. 'It just... disappeared. Maybe it'll work this time.' She bent to put the last seed down, but Hailey stopped her.

'Don't waste it. Maybe it's not meant to be planted in the ground. We should keep it until we know what to do with it.'

'So you don't think it was my powers?' When Hailey shook her head, Demi relaxed and smiled. 'Good. Because I know I'm one Tartarus of a Demeter, and if this was a normal seed, I'd be able to grow it in a millisecond.'

'Come on, let's go back to bed before someone catches us.'

A door creaking open whipped Hailey's head around, and she ducked to the ground, dragging Demi down with her.

'Wh--' Demi began.

Hailey pushed a finger against her own lips and nudged her head behind Demi.

The nereids were gliding their way from the side of the palace towards the grounds' edge. They were a good twenty yards from where Hailey and Demi crouched behind a pearl tree.

Hailey tilted her head, listening for any titbits of conversation, but the nereids walked in silence, not uttering so much as a syllable before leaping into the sea and disappearing.

'This is bad,' Hailey said, keeping her voice low. The nereids sneaking out in the middle of the night was basically the same as them running around screaming, "We're up to something, and it'll probably lead to all of you dying."

'Should we follow them?' Demi whispered. 'I can run and get the wand.'

The wand probably could give them the power to breathe underwater. 'Yeah, but--' Hailey tensed again, crouching even lower.

Amathia appeared from the side of the palace, tracing the same path to the grounds' edge her sisters had. She dove into the sea.

'Don't worry about the wand,' Hailey said, relieved to know Amathia really was keeping an eye on her sisters.

'Should we tell the boys about this?'

'Not now. Tomorrow.' She didn't think it was something they needed to be woken up for, considering they couldn't do anything except hope Amathia uncovered whatever diabolical plan the nereids were forming.

Demi clutched the wand, looking towards her overflowing suitcase on her bed as if contemplating stuffing it inside. 'Do we really have to leave it behind?'

Hailey zipped up her suitcase and straightened to meet Demi's petulant eyes. 'Yes.' She held her hand out. 'Give it to me.'

Demi pouted and handed it over.

Hailey buried it under a pile of jeans in her chest of drawers. 'Trust me, I'd love to take it and use it to help us with whatever horrible punishments our parents plan to give us when we tell them about Killer Island, but I really think we should only use it to spy on the nereids. Which means we won't have any use for it while we're back home.'

'I thought you were over your whole the-wand-is-evil fear.'

'I am. But if we start using it for other stuff, like tormenting Venus, we'll increase our chances of getting caught, which would mean the wand would get taken from us.'

'Hmmm, I guess that does make sense,' Demi agreed before turning to finish packing her suitcase.

It was true that Hailey had taken the wand off probation. They'd been using it to spy on the nereids for the past six weeks, and Hailey hadn't received any more violent flashes. She still didn't like the way the wand's power rushed into her whenever she touched it, but as long as she stayed in control of her own body when she held it, she couldn't complain.

But despite the wand's power, it hadn't been coming in too handy lately. Aside from the first day Hailey had started spying on the nereids, she hadn't overheard a single thing of importance. She figured they were probably discussing their plans on their frequent night swims, which was the one place Hailey wouldn't follow them: A. because swimming in the sea at night freaked her out, and B. because Amathia always tracked the nereids into the water a few minutes later. So Hailey figured it was safe to assume Amathia knew about whatever her sisters were up to at night, and, if it related to killing students, that she'd stop them.

'Ready to go home?' Demi plunked her suitcase on the floor.

The June holidays had arrived, which meant Hailey got to go home for three weeks. She couldn't wait. She was desperate to see her mum again--and to get away from all the palace drama. 'Yep, I'm ready.'

They fought their way into the common room, where Madam Grayson, who was holding a wooden box that looked like a mini treasure chest, was handing out travelling necklaces.

Hailey joined the line, watching the students in front of her put on a necklace and swirl into a smear of colours before vanishing. She couldn't decide whether to be excited or anxious about going home. She was dying to see her mum again. But at the same time, she'd have to tell her about Killer Island, which wouldn't end well--her mum would probably be so mad she wouldn't talk to her for the entire three weeks.

'Here you are,' Madam Grayson said, handing Hailey a gold travelling necklace. 'Enjoy your holiday.'

_Time to face the Fates_ , Hailey thought, slipping the necklace over her head and closing her eyes.

Her body erupted in tingles as a floating sensation swept through her, making her feel as though she were flying. A few seconds later, her head stilled and she opened her eyes. The common room no longer lingered in front of her, but her familiar blue bedroom.

Hailey leapt onto her neatly made bed and hugged her pillows. She didn't care that her mattress felt like a table compared to the sea-sponge one at the Academy. All that mattered was she was home; the one place where she didn't have to worry about what the nereids were up to, or what deadly situation she'd be thrown into next.

She was safe here.

She jumped off her bed when she heard hurried footsteps on the stairs; her mum appeared in the doorframe a second later.

'Hailey!' Evonee flew towards her, pulling her daughter into a tight hug. 'I've been so worried.'

Hailey hugged her mum back, inhaling her vanilla and turpentine scent. Tears pricked her eyes, and she hugged her mum tighter, suddenly realising how much she'd missed her.

A minute passed before they broke apart, Evonee's paint-smeared overalls leaving green, blue, and yellow paint blotches on Hailey's jeans and jumper. Evonee fixed her gaze on Hailey's. 'What happened?'

Hailey gulped. She had no idea how to tell her mum about stealing sea-horses to go to an island, or entering a deadly forest, without completely freaking her out. One thing was for sure: she wasn't telling her about her run-ins with Scylla, the knoxen, or the griffin, because her mum would never let her out of her sight again if she did, which meant no more Poseidon's Academy.

'Maybe you should sit down.'

Evonee bit her lip. 'I'm not going to like this, am I?'

'Please sit down,' Hailey said, her stomach feeling queasier by the second.

Evonee took a deep breath before perching on Hailey's bed. 'Okay, tell me.'

'Please don't freak out... You see, there was this girl, Kendra, who's an Artemis. I caught her borrowing one of Poseidon's sea-horses so she could go to a nearby island and spend time with some animals,' Hailey explained, deciding to put a big focus on how the whole thing had been a rescue mission and not her going for a joy ride. 'I tried to stop her, but I couldn't, and she left. I know I should have gone to a teacher after that, but I was afraid they'd expel Kendra, so I... um... kind of went to Kille--to the island with Demi, Jayden, and some of my other friends to rescue her. And we... ah... lost track of time and had to spend the night there.' Hailey sped through the last part of the story and leaned away from her mum, anticipating an explosion of anger.

But there wasn't one.

Hailey frowned at her mum. She'd completely blanched. Her blue eyes were focused on Hailey, but they looked distant, like her mum was somewhere else. Hailey dared to lean back towards her. 'Mum? Are you okay?'

Evonee continued to stare, unblinkingly, as if her brain had shut down.

'Mum, I'm sorry for what I did. But I'm all right.'

Evonee didn't stir.

As much as Hailey appreciated not being yelled at, the silence was worse. It made her uneasy not knowing what her mum was going to do. 'Please say something.'

A light flicked back on in Evonee and she lurched up. 'What were you thinking? I can't believe you would be so stupid as to go to an island. Anything could have happened. You could have been _killed_!'

'I'm really sorry, Mum. I should have told a teacher about Kendra leaving. But I felt responsible for letting her go.'

'That doesn't make it right, Hailey. I can't believe you did this.' She rubbed her temples. 'Maybe it was a mistake sending you to that school.'

'No!' Hailey's voice was desperate. 'Please don't take me out of Poseidon's Academy. I love it there.'

Yes, the palace came with constant drama, but she couldn't imagine attending school anywhere else. She'd die of boredom if she was taught Ancient History by a teacher who had only read about it in books. And she couldn't simply abandon the other students there to the likes of the nereids.

Hailey watched her mum with dreaded anticipation as she paced towards the window, staring out at the rows of houses. She lingered there for a good few minutes before turning back around. 'I'll let you go back, but only if you promise never to do anything so stupid again.'

'I promise.'

Evonee walked back to Hailey and hugged her. 'You're so lucky to be alive. Please don't ever make me worry like that again. You're all I have left.'

**24**

**Jail Break**

Hailey materialised outside Demi's house in a swirl of colours, the floral scent of perfume engulfing her the second she arrived. Red, yellow, pink, and purple tulips bloomed in Demi's front yard, alongside pansies, snapdragons, chrysanthemums, and periwinkles; and jasmine climbed over the house, almost completely covering up its brick exterior. Hailey pulled off her bronze travelling necklace, tucking it into her jacket pocket, before knocking on the door.

The final verdict on Hailey's punishment, for almost getting killed, was a two-week grounding. Hailey thought her mum would have grounded her for the rest of her life, so she'd gladly submitted to two weeks of house arrest. Demi, however, hadn't gotten off so easy and was still grounded, but, thankfully, her mum was letting her have visitors.

'Hailey,' Demi's mum, Nicole, said with a bright smile, opening the door. 'Come in. I'd hug you, but I can't let go of Alice or she'll run out the door.'

'Another rescue?' Hailey asked, reaching out to pet the fluffy white bunny tucked in Nicole's arm.

'Yes, and she's settling in just fine with all the other animals--speaking of which, I better go feed the guinea pigs. Demi's upstairs.'

Hailey made her way up the stairs, a tabby cat skittering away from her as she wandered down the hallway to a door with a hand-written sign reading, _Demi 's Room. Keep Out!_ A snarling minotaur was drawn underneath it, followed by, _that means you Annabelle!_

Hailey knocked on the door.

'Come in.'

She pushed into the room, the sweet scent of blooming flowers swarming her. Fuchsias, roses, and wisteria snaked along the walls and hung from the ceiling, and grass grew on the ground in place of carpet, making Demi's room look like a vibrant garden.

Demi lay on her unmade double bed, watching the small television against the wall, where a news reporter was interviewing someone about the increasing prices of houses.

Hailey frowned. 'Since when do you watch the news?'

'Since I got locked in this house and discovered there isn't much else on in the morning. Now shh, a report on the missing people is coming up.' She pushed herself into a sitting position and used the TV remote to turn up the volume.

Hailey manoeuvred her way around scattered clothes and books, and plopped down next to Demi.

The screen changed to an anchor woman sitting behind a desk, shuffling papers. 'Well, there you have it--if you want to afford a house, you need to give up eating smashed avocado,' the anchor woman said. 'Now, in other news. Another twenty-three people have gone missing this week from countries including France, Japan, Turkey, and New Zealand. Like the previous people to go missing, no clues have been left to explain what's happened to them. This brings the total number of people to go missing in the past two months to 182. The police still have no leads on potential suspects, and are advising people not to leave their houses after dark until the parties responsible for the disappearances are apprehended.'

_That 's weird_, Hailey thought as the anchor woman moved on to a story about twin golden hinds being born at a zoo. She didn't exactly watch the news, or follow missing-person reports, but something told her that 182 people going missing in a couple of months was a little out of the ordinary.

'Hey all.'

Jayden, Alec, and Aaron piled into the room.

Jayden shook a packet of sour cream and onion crisps. 'We brought food.'

'And drinks,' Alec added, showing off a 2-litre bottle of imitation ambrosia.

'Awesome.' Demi abandoned her bed to join the boys on the grass. Hailey sat down beside her, just under a vine of blooming wisteria that smelled like grapes.

'So, what were you two watching?' Aaron asked.

'The news,' Hailey said, filling a paper cup with ambrosia and taking a sip of the toffee-apple-tasting liquid.

Jayden cocked an eyebrow. 'The news? What happened, Dems, did you hit the wrong button?'

Demi scrunched her face up at him. 'No, Jayden. I was watching the report on those missing people.'

'Oh, I've heard about that,' Aaron said, pouring ambrosia into his cup. 'Something like 300 people have gone missing in a month.'

'It's the last couple of months, actually,' Alec corrected, popping open the packet of crisps, the scent of onion drifting up Hailey's nostrils. 'And it was 182 the last time I checked--most of which are criminals.'

'As in prisoners?' Jayden slurped his ambrosia.

Alec nodded.

'No, the reporters haven't said anything about mass prison break outs--the missing people _can 't_ be criminals,' Demi argued.

Hailey had a hard time believing that too. Prisons weren't exactly easy places to break out of for a few criminals, let alone almost 200. 'Whoever told you that is lying.'

'Well, I overheard my dad telling my mum, and he heard it from my uncle, who's a police officer in Dublin,' Alec said, taking a sip of his ambrosia. 'They're not going to say that on the news though. They don't want to create a mass panic by telling the public that criminals are going missing from high security prisons all over the world, especially when they have no leads to find them with, and no idea how they escaped.'

'How can they not know how they escaped?' Aaron asked. 'Are the prison guards really so slow they haven't found the dugout tunnels yet? I'd think they'd be pretty obvious.'

Jayden threw a crisp at him. 'You watch too many movies.'

'There are no holes or any other signs of escape,' Alec explained. 'It's like they just disappeared from their locked cells overnight, which is another reason why they're not saying prisoners have escaped, because they're starting to think that maybe they didn't escape. That maybe something else happened to them.'

The whole conversation made Hailey uneasy. Criminals being on the loose was freaky enough, but it was even worse knowing that they seemed to be disappearing. _What 's happening to them?_ _Has someone with the power of Hermes found a way to break through the power-neutralising barriers that surround the prisons? And if so, why are they breaking out so many criminals?_

The only thing that gave Hailey comfort was knowing all prisoners had to wear neutralising bracelets, so if they were on the loose, their powers wouldn't work.

Demi's door flung open. 'Annabelle, get out!' Demi ordered the freckle-faced girl standing in its frame.

Annabelle smirked, flicking a strand of blonde hair from her face. 'I'm not in your room, Demi. I'm standing outside.'

'If you don't close the door and leave right now, I'm calling mum,' she threatened.

'Fine. But here's a little present before I go.' A plump red water balloon materialised in her outstretched palm.

Hailey was so impressed by Annabelle's conjuring skills that it didn't register with her what was about to happen. The water balloon flew from Annabelle's hand and exploded on the ground with a _pop_ , water spraying over everyone--even the crisps weren't spared.

Demi lunged to her feet. 'You're dead!' Annabelle bolted from the doorway. 'Fine, I'll kill you later,' she shouted after her, slamming the door before turning back to everyone, her hair dripping. 'Sorry about that.'

'Was that your sister?' Aaron asked, picking pieces of red balloon out of his drink.

Demi plunked herself back on the damp grass. 'Unfortunately.'

'She looks nothing like you,' Alec remarked, wiping at the water dripping down his face.

'Um, that's because we're not technically blood relatives,' Demi said, focusing her attention on scooping up pieces of red balloon. 'My parents, ah, died when I was four. There was a robbery... wrong place, wrong time. My aunt didn't want me, so she put me up for adoption, and that's how I ended up here.' She dropped the balloon pieces into an empty paper cup. 'Now, can we please talk about something not so morbid, like plotting Venus and the twins' downfall.'

**25**

**Trapped**

Hailey found herself trapped in a familiar nightmare.

Demi stared vacantly at the sea, which stretched up in front of her like a wall of fluorescent blue water. Coral and sea-anemones in the gardens around her glowed pink, blue, green, and purple, casting the grounds in a dull light. 'They're here now, and they're getting stronger.'

Hailey gulped and glanced at the sea, seeing nothing but empty water. 'Who's here?'

Demi whipped around. 'You can still stop them.'

The wand appeared in her friend's hand, its moonstone tip shimmering. Hailey frowned. 'With the wand?'

'The wand did this.'

Suddenly, they weren't alone anymore. Hundreds of adults crowded the grounds, pressing up against Hailey and Demi and the force field. Most wore orange jumpsuits and neutralising bracelets, but some wore casual clothes. The only thing they shared in common was a look of misery, like they'd lost all hope.

Hailey knew instantly they were the missing people and escaped criminals. _Why are they at Poseidon 's Academy?_ _And what do they have to do with the wand?_ She stared back at Demi. 'I don't understand.'

Demi looked at her with such sadness that Hailey wanted to cry for disappointing her. 'You never do.' She jumped through the force field.

'Demi!' Hailey shrieked, reaching to pull her best friend from the water.

She snatched her hand back as the people crowding the grounds materialised in the sea. They were only in her sight for a second before barbed tentacles wrapped around their legs and dragged them into the darkened depths below, a silent scream etched on each of their faces.

Demi was the only one left untouched, floating before Hailey like a shade. She met Hailey's eyes and mouthed the words _you 're next _before she, too, was yanked away.

Hailey woke up, gasping in a breath. It had been so long since she'd had one of those nightmares that she'd thought they were over with. It still felt as if they were trying to tell her something. _But what?_ All she could think was that it had something to do with the nereids. That the dreams were her subconscious's way of warning her to be careful because they just might set a sea-monster on her or something.

And, honestly, the nereids were really starting to worry her. October was almost here, and she still had no idea what they were up to. Her and her friends' spying seemed pointless. It was impossible to know when the sisters would be in their room.

Hailey thought it odd that the nereids hadn't done anything yet, especially when they'd said whatever they were up to would take a few full moons--which Hailey was pretty sure meant months in nymph speak. She liked to think Amathia had worked out what they were up to and foiled their plans before they could do anything. But she wasn't willing to take that chance and stop spying on them.

She glanced at the clock, which showed her it was 7am. _Another ruined sleep-in_ , she thought with a sigh, rolling out of bed. Well, she might as well use this extra time to visit the stable, she decided, pulling on some clothes before sneaking into the hallway.

She hadn't been down there since Madam Grayson had made her and her friends clean it out all those months ago. At first she'd avoided going back because she was afraid of getting caught and into more trouble, but then it had been because she was too busy spying and trying to keep up with her school work to think about her hiding spot.

She was making time for it now though. It was the one place where she could forget about everything else going on in her life.

At least that's what she'd thought until she stepped inside and found the stable empty.

Hailey's first thought was that Kendra had run off again. _No, she wouldn 't be that stupid. And, if she was, she would have taken one horse not eight._

The more plausible theory was that the nereids had taken them for a ride, which meant they could be back at any second, and Hailey figured it could be a great opportunity to learn something about what they've been up to. But that would only work if she was invisible, and she'd left the wand in her dorm.

She turned to run back upstairs to get the wand, but paused when she heard a whinny. 'Rain?' she called, heading to the end stall on the right and peering over the gate. Rain stared up at her with gold doe eyes. 'Look how big you are,' Hailey said, astounded. When they'd brought Rain back, she'd been small enough to fit in her arms, and now she was the size of a pony.

Hailey unlatched the gate and slipped into the stall, clicking the gate closed behind her. She could spare a minute before getting the wand--the nereids probably wouldn't be back for a little while, at least that's what she was hoping.

She plopped down on the ground, the dried seaweed on the floor scratching against the back of her legs. 'I'm sorry I haven't visited you,' she told Rain, stroking her gold mane. 'I've been a little busy.'

Rain rubbed her head against Hailey's shoulder, as if telling her she was forgiven. Hailey smiled and continued stroking her while she told Rain about everything that had happened over the past months.

By the time Hailey finished telling Rain about why she couldn't sleep, a lot more than a minute had passed. She moved to stand up, freezing when she heard hoof falls approaching.

_The nereids!_

Hailey dropped back down and listened with a pounding heart as the horses trotted into the stable. Her body screamed at her to flee, but the nereids would catch her if she tried, and she shuddered to think what they'd do to her.

The only thing she could do was sit soundlessly in Rain's stall until they left.

'At least Poseidon will be pleased we have taken care of his hippocampi,' one of the nereids remarked as gates clicked open.

Hooves clopped against the ground.

'Let's hope we have expelled these humans for him as well when he returns,' another said with distaste.

The gates clicked again.

'Do not fear the plan...' Nemertes trailed off.

'What is it?'

'There is someone here.'

Hailey stiffened. Her hand shot to her jeans pocket, where she expected to find the wand. _Medusa! I should have gone back for the wand before visiting Rain_ , she cursed her stupidity.

Hailey held her breath and prayed to the Tyches that the nereids would assume they were imagining things and leave--or that she'd gain the power to turn invisible.

Rain neighed and the tiny hope Hailey had had of the nereids not peering into her stall vanished with it. _Rain might as well have said, 'The person you're looking for is in here.'_

Hailey glared at her. _Traitor_. The pegacorn nodded her head, as if trying to tell Hailey something, or maybe she was laughing, thinking this was all a fun game of hide and seek.

'It's merely that pegasus-unicorn creature,' one of the nereids said.

Silence followed.

Hailey didn't dare move a single muscle or take a breath. She crouched, frozen, waiting for the nereids' heads to pop over the gate. What would she do if that happened? _Run? Scream?_ Wound anyone even hear her down here?

'So it is,' Nemertes finally said. 'Let's return to our chamber.'

Hailey's breath came out in a gush as the stable's doors closed.

Rain nudged Hailey's shoulder, and she looked at the pegacorn with as much apology and gratitude as she could muster. 'I'm sorry I ever doubted you,' she said, scratching Rain under the chin.

Hailey wanted to run and tell her friends what had happened. But for all she knew, Nemertes and the other nereids were waiting outside to see if anyone had been hiding in the stable after all. _Safer to wait ten minutes_ , she thought.

Besides, she needed to work out what to tell Demi, Jayden, Alec, and Aaron. Nemertes had mentioned Poseidon coming back again. Maybe it was time to tell her friends about that part of the nereids' plans. She still believed the gods were dead, and that the nereids just hadn't realised it yet.

But what if she was wrong? What if there was a way to resurrect them? That was something Hailey couldn't risk. No way would she let the prophecy come true. Her friends needed to know the truth so they could make sure whatever the nereids were planning wouldn't happen.

Fifteen minutes later, Hailey was sitting on Jayden's dorm floor with Demi, Jayden, Alec, and Aaron.

'So what's this about?' Demi yawned, leaning her head against Jayden's desk. Hailey had had to drag her out of bed.

'The nereids,' Hailey said. 'I got trapped in the stable with them.'

Aaron's eyes widened. 'Are you okay? Did they hurt you?'

'They didn't know I was there. I was in Rain's stall and they came back from riding the horses. They didn't say much, but they did mention a plan and getting rid of the students again.' Hailey paused, wondering if telling her friends about the gods potentially being alive was a good idea, since they'd probably be angry that she'd kept that part of the story a secret. _They need to know, just in case it 's true_. 'And there's something else. They mentioned Poseidon coming back... And it wasn't the first time they've said it either.'

Hailey took a breath. She needed to tell them everything and hope they didn't hate her for keeping the truth from them. 'At the beginning of the year, I got sucked into one of Nemertes's memories. Poseidon was there and he was dying. He told Nemertes that Zeus was going to save the Olympians, but Nemertes needed to find a way to get to Olympus to bring them back when humans were weak enough for them to enslave again.'

No one said anything. They just stared. And stared. And stared.

Jayden cleared his throat. 'Um, why didn't you tell us this before?'

'Because I think the gods are dead. I mean, you have Poseidon's powers. Demi has Demeter's, and I have Zeus's. How would we have Olympian powers if they were still alive? I assumed that Poseidon and the other Olympians died before the plan could work. I didn't say anything because I didn't want to worry you about something I didn't believe would happen.'

'Hailey, that wasn't for you to decide,' Aaron said, his eyes full of reproach. 'You should have told us the truth from the start. The nereids being tasked with bringing the gods back is pretty essential information to know.'

Hailey dropped her head, feeling like a terrible friend. 'I know. I'm really sorry.'

'So why did you decide to tell us now if you're so sure they're dead?' Jayden asked.

'I guess I'm not so sure anymore. Maybe they can come back somehow.'

'You said the gods were dead.' Demi finally spoke, shooting Jayden an accusatory look. 'And so did you.' She transferred her gaze to Alec.

Alec gulped. 'I... I...'

'It's okay.' Aaron slapped him on the back, cutting off his stuttering. 'Nothing is definite. I think Hailey is probably right about the gods dying before they could do whatever they were planning. Regardless, we need to amp up our spying. Every chance we get, we need to follow those nereids.'

They moved to the common room after that, before students started trickling out of their dorms and could bust Hailey and Demi in the boys' dormitories. They were hunched in a corner, trying to work out a spying schedule, when a pile of sapphires landed in the middle of the circle Hailey and her friends had formed. Hailey scowled up at Venus and the twins.

'What are you doing?' Aaron demanded.

Venus's face morphed into horror, and she pointed to the jewels. 'They've stolen sapphires!' she shouted.

Hailey sprang up. ' _You_ stole them!'

Madam Grayson charged from the girls' dormitories. 'What's happening out here?'

'I was walking back to my dorm when I saw _them_ pulling sapphires from their pockets,' Venus said. 'See, they're on the floor--right there.'

'She's lying!' Demi was on her feet now, too, along with Jayden and Aaron. 'They're the ones who've been stealing.' She shot Venus and the twins a glare.

Madam Grayson rubbed under her eyes. 'I'm tired of all this fighting. Just put the sapphires back where they came from.'

Venus gaped. 'But they stole them. It's against the Academy's rules.'

'We didn't stea--' Hailey began.

'Enough,' Madam Grayson snapped. 'Hailey, would you please put the jewels back. And if there's any more fighting between any of you, I'll have no choice but to give everyone a detention and make you sort your issues out there.'

Venus continued to gape as Madam Grayson marched back into the girls' dormitories.

'Is that all you've got?' Aaron asked her acidly.

Venus glared. 'No, I've got plenty more in stock for you,' she hissed before stalking off with the twins.

Alec snatched a sapphire and stood up. 'She makes me so mad,' he said, clenching his hands into fists.

The tinkling sound of something shattering had Hailey scanning the common room for the cause. Her gaze focused back on Alec who opened his hand, revealing a pile of blue dust.

Jayden cocked an eyebrow. 'What's that?'

Alec stared at the dust with wide eyes. 'I think... I think...'

'Well, spit it out,' Demi prompted.

He looked completely dumbfounded. 'I think I crushed the sapphire.'

Aaron scoffed. 'No one can crush a jewel with their bare hands, especially when they've got twigs for arms. They must be fakes.' He picked up a sapphire and clenched his fist around it until his face turned red, but the sapphire didn't so much as crack. He looked at Alec, dubious. 'How'd you do that?'

'I don't know.'

The memory of Alec catching Kendra when she fell off the cliff flashed into Hailey's mind. She remembered thinking that Kendra should have crushed him, but he'd been unharmed. Comprehension hit her. 'Alec, I think you've got a new power.'

He scratched his head. 'What do you mean?'

'It looks like you've got a bit of Heracles in you,' she told him, smiling at the stunned look on his face. 'It explains how you were able to catch Kendra when she fell.'

Alec stared at the dust in his hand like it held a great secret. 'I can't be a Heracles. I'm an Other, and strength is hardly an expansion of my powers to pass through things.'

'I think Hailey's right.' Jayden rubbed his chin, thoughtful. 'Madam Norwood said it's possible to have more than one power, and that a second power might not show up until years later.'

'Yeah, she did,' Demi said. 'And she also said powers usually expand when we need them the most--and you _really_ needed super strength to save Kendra.'

Alec's hands dropped, the blue dust scattering to the floor. 'I can't believe I've got a god power.'

Aaron crossed his arms. 'How is it fair that _he_ gets super strength? He can't even do one chin-up. If anyone should be a Heracles, it's me--I'm always working out,' he huffed.

A moment of silence passed before everyone burst out laughing, realising the irony of Alec's new power.

**26**

**Revelations**

One month later. Hailey sat at a desk in the common room, attempting to commit her Monsters and Creatures of the World textbook to memory so she could pass the approaching end-of-year exams. She flipped the page, smiling when she saw the entry on griffins. _Finally_ , she thought, _something I already know and don 't have to bother studying_. Hailey snapped the book closed. _Break time_. She packed up her things and headed into the grounds, which were packed with students hunching over notebooks and textbooks.

Hailey found Demi and Jayden sitting under a seaweed tree, which had little seashell flowers blossoming on it, surrounded by textbooks. 'No Aaron yet?' she asked, toeing away a few books before settling on the diamond floor; a school of rainbow fish darted around beneath her.

'Not yet,' Jayden said, rubbing the back of his neck.

Hailey took his lack of appearance as a good sign. It was his turn to spy on the nereids, and he'd been gone for a few hours now, which she hoped meant he was learning something.

Hailey and her friends had spent the past month spying on the nereids constantly--except for when they were in class--they even took turns spying on them at night. But so far it had all been pointless. The nereids spent most of their time in the sea, and when they were in the palace, they didn't mention anything about Poseidon or killing students.

A book slammed shut. 'That's it. I can't do it anymore.' Demi pressed her fingertips to her temples. 'My head is going to explode if I have to read one more paragraph about the characteristics of a hydra. I mean how does me being able to tell if a hydra is male or female from the shape of its frills help me? It doesn't. Male or female, a hydra is always going to try and kill me. And what's the deal with--'

'Aaron,' Hailey said, cutting off Demi's rant, spotting him striding towards them from the palace. 'So?' she prompted when he plunked himself beside her.

'So they were in their room, and spent three hours talking about which fish scales make your hair gleam more. And I'm not exaggerating. Three hours!' He pulled the wand from his track pants and tossed it into Jayden's lap. 'Tag, you're it.'

Hailey's heart sank. _This isn 't good_. If they didn't find out what the nereids were up to soon, everyone could end up dead. Of course there was always the chance Amathia had foiled her sisters' plans already--Hailey really hoped that was true, and that some sea-urchin bomb didn't blow her and everyone else up three days from now.

A mountain of books dropped in front of her, snapping her from her thoughts.

'I found some books that expand on the information in our textbooks,' Alec said, sitting down.

Demi's mouth fell open. 'You can't be serious.'

'Yeah, Alec, that's kind of overkill,' Jayden agreed.

Hailey was about to tell Alec he was taking studying a bit too seriously--they were only supposed to learn the stuff in their textbooks after all--but got distracted by the newspaper perched on top of the books.

She was vaguely aware of Alec diving into a lecture about how important doing well on the end-of-year exams was, and that a bit of extra reading could only help in their studying. But her main attention was on the paper's headline: " _Erinyes Back in Business "_.

Hailey picked up the paper and started reading.

The Erinyes, who were believed to have died along with the gods, have been sighted in Sussex. Abigail Norris was bringing her husband, Joseph Norris, a cup of tea when she walked into the living room to find what she believed to be an Erinys grabbing him by the neck. She described the Erinys as looking like a rabid woman wearing a tattered red dress. Mrs Norris claimed the Erinys snarled at her before dematerialising with her husband.

The police have denied all claims that the Erinyes are involved in Mr Norris's disappearance, instead claiming the person who kidnapped him was an Inbetweener with the power to dematerialise. This raises the question of whether this so-called woman--or Erinys--is involved in the other 717 disappearances. But this is a question the police have refused to comment on.

The paper slid from Hailey's hands. She'd learned enough about the Erinyes in Monsters and Creatures to know they were spirits of vengeance and retribution. They'd lived in the Underworld with Hades, the god of the dead, and their job had been to bring criminals to Tartarus so they could be punished for their crimes.

It all made sense to Hailey now--what had happened to the missing people. The majority of them were criminals--ideal targets for the Erinyes. And the other people who'd been taken were obviously guilty of something, they just hadn't been convicted...

_But if the Erinyes didn 't die with the other gods, where have they been for the last sixteen centuries? And why have they chosen now to come back?_

Hailey's dream surged into her mind. The missing people had been standing in the grounds, and Demi had been holding the wand saying _it_ did this.

Hailey's breath caught. 'It was us! We brought back the Erinyes!'

'What are you talking about, Hailey?' Demi asked, but Hailey didn't hear her.

People started disappearing seven months ago, around the time they found the wand. The spell they'd read hadn't been written to restore the wand's magic; it had been written to wake up the Erinyes.

Hailey's stomach clenched, and she swallowed down the urge to vomit. She and her friends had released the Erinyes. The Erinyes that had kidnapped a bunch of people, who they were probably torturing. She hated herself for not taking the wand to Amathia.

But even now, when she knew the truth, an urge to protect the wand remained, and the very thought of turning it over to Amathia made her ball her fists up in protest.

'Hailey?' Jayden nudged her. 'What's wrong?'

'The paper,' was all she could say.

Demi frowned, picking up the fallen newspaper; the boys leaned forward to read it. Jayden, Alec, and Aaron paled as they finished the article.

Demi laughed. 'You can't believe this.' She tossed the paper aside. 'It's just a crazy person trying to get ten seconds of fame by making up a story about the Erinyes.'

'But it explains so much,' Alec contradicted. 'How else could so many criminals escape without leaving a trace of how they did it?'

Demi's carefree look faltered. 'Even if it is the Erinyes--and I'm not saying it is--why have they decided to show up now?'

Hailey found her voice. 'We woke them up.'

Demi raised an eyebrow. ' _We_ woke them up? Are you sure you're feeling okay, Hails?'

'She's right.' Alec's voice was barely above a whisper. 'It was the wand.'

'But how--'Aaron started to ask.

'The spell!' Jayden gasped.

Demi shook her head. 'No. We didn't do this. We couldn't have.' She looked at the four of them with pleading eyes, begging them to agree that it wasn't their fault.

More than anything, Hailey wanted to tell her they were only joking. But that would be a lie. They were responsible for the missing people--they might as well have kidnapped them themselves--which meant they were responsible for making things right.

Hailey sprang up. 'We have to fix this.' She dashed towards the palace, ignoring Demi's protests that it couldn't be their fault.

Once again, her stupid decision to go after Kendra haunted her. If Hailey had been smart and told a teacher instead of running off, she and her friends wouldn't have ended up in the griffin's nest and found the wand. Then Alec never would have read the spell, and Hailey wouldn't be about to do the dumbest and most dangerous thing she could imagine.

'Hailey, where are we going?' Jayden asked from behind her.

She didn't answer. She ran into the palace and up the stairs to their common room, charging through it.

She didn't stop until she reached the girls' dormitories, and that was only because Venus, Nerissa, and Cleo were blocking the hallway. 'Get out of my way!' Hailey ordered them.

Venus surveyed Jayden, Alec, and Aaron standing with Demi behind Hailey; a smile tweaked her lips. 'Boys aren't allowed in here, are they, girls?'

'Oh, no,' Nerissa said, shaking her head with derisive deplore.

'Definitely not,' Cleo agreed, clucking her tongue.

'I'm afraid I'll have to report this.'

Hailey punched Venus in her perfect nose.

The pain that shot through her hand didn't even register. She shoved a howling Venus into the shocked twins, clearing a path, and fought through the chaos that erupted in the hallway as studying students poured from their dorms to see what all the screaming was about.

'What the Tartarus was that?' Jayden demanded as the five of them slipped into Hailey and Demi's dorm.

'You punched Venus! Seriously _punched_ her!' Demi said, looking so shocked her eyes were practically popping out of her head.

On any other day, Hailey would have been feeling more satisfied than she'd ever felt in her life with what she'd done. Of course, on any other day, she never would have risked the consequences of punching Venus.

But none of that mattered right now. All Hailey knew was that she needed to stop the Erinyes and save the people they were torturing. 'I had to. She was wasting time.'

'Um, shouldn't we be telling Amathia about the Erinyes instead of hiding out in your dorm?' Alec asked.

Telling Amathia was definitely the smart thing to do, but Hailey couldn't. If she told Amathia, then she'd probably gather up a few teachers and use the wand to take them to the Underworld to stop the Erinyes. Hailey couldn't allow that, because the Erinyes weren't exactly known for having a passive nature and would likely kill anyone who tried to fight them, or, at the very least, imprison them.

Hailey refused to risk anyone else's life when everything that was happening was her fault. She was responsible for fixing it, no matter the consequences. 'I'm going after the Erinyes,' she told Alec, striding to her chest of drawers and clawing through the bottom drawer, tossing aside jeans and shorts.

'What?!' Alec exclaimed. 'You can't. You don't know how to fight the Erinyes.'

Hailey yanked the wand from her drawer, staring spitefully at the object that had caused so much trouble. She twisted back to her friends and said, 'The wand woke them up. It can put them back to sleep.' At least that's what she was counting on, and if the wand had been powerful enough to wake up three gods, then it had to be powerful enough to take Hailey to the Underworld. 'I don't expect any of you to come with me,' she added, seeing the looks on her friends' faces, which ranged from shocked to utterly horrified.

Alec shook his head. 'No, Hailey. It's too dangerous. And we promised Amathia we would never do anything like this again.'

Hailey hadn't forgotten her promise to Amathia, or her mum, about never stupidly risking her life again. _Sometimes promises have to be broken._ And besides, she had the wand. It might have caused this whole mess, but it would keep her safe, so what she was about to do wasn't really that dangerous when you thought about it.

'Hailey's right,' Aaron said. 'We're responsible for this. It's our job to save those people and stop the Erinyes. I'm coming with you.' He moved to her side.

'Well, I'm not letting you two have all the fun,' Demi said, joining them. She'd obviously realised that the paper had been telling the truth about the Erinyes. 'It'll be pretty cool visiting another one of the gods' undiscovered hideouts--I never even thought of using the wand to find the gods' lairs.'

Much to Hailey's surprise, Alec stepped forward. 'If this is anyone's fault, it's mine. I read the spell. And you're right, we can't endanger others for our own mistake.'

Everyone looked at Jayden, who shrugged nonchalantly. 'What the Tartarus, I'll come too--it beats studying.'

Hailey wasn't fussed on putting her friends at risk by letting them go with her, but, in truth, she didn't want to go alone. The Underworld was a buried place shrouded in horrific tales of gloom and misery.

Even with the wand and its magic flowing through her, Hailey was petrified. She didn't know what would happen once she broke into the Underworld and came face to face with the Erinyes.

'IT WAS HAILEY!'

It wasn't hard to work out Venus was the one screaming in the hallway, and judging by her words, it appeared the commotion in the girls' dormitories had finally caught Madam Grayson's attention.

'Time to go.' Hailey whirled the wand around her and her friends. ' _Kda kiat_ Underworld.' The wand's moonstone tip glowed.

One moment Hailey was floating.

The next she was sinking.

Water that smelled of sewage wrapped around her, its burning warmth stinging her eyes and flooding her lungs.

She kicked her legs, coughing and spluttering when her head found the surface.

She coughed out the last of the foul water and gazed around, trying to work out where she was. But it was completely dark. The only thing she could make out was the high rock tunnel the current was dragging her through.

'Did anyone bring a torch?'

Hailey squinted in the direction Aaron's voice had come from; she could barely make out his silhouette. 'Hang on. I'll use the wa-' A wave dunked Hailey, another slamming her against the rock wall as the water frothed into a rage.

She clawed her way back to the surface, only to be dunked again. She felt like a ragdoll being pulled between two quarrelling children as the waves tossed her from side to side.

Hailey braced herself to be smacked into the rock wall a second time, but the water suddenly calmed as it emptied into a circular cavern lit with flaming torches. She glanced up and cringed at the towering ceiling, where rocks hung like icicles, waiting to slice through the air and burrow into anyone unfortunate enough to be floating below.

She tore her gaze from the daunting ceiling and spotted a rotting dock at the end of the river. _Land!_ She began swimming towards it and then stopped.

_What 's the point?_

_Without the wand there 's no hope_. The Erinyes would kill her and her friends, and it would be her fault, because _she_ woke the creatures up. And _she_ dragged her friends to the Underworld.

She was nothing but a disappointment: the most useless and inept Zeus who had ever lived. The world would be a better place without her to make a mess of things.

With that thought, Hailey slipped beneath the water.

Deeper and deeper she sank, her melancholy growing as she imagined her friends drowning around her because of her mistakes. Her lungs screamed for air, forcing her to inhale the burning water dragging her down.

Everything blurred.

Her eyelids grew heavy and she faded away.

**27**

**The Underworld**

Hailey felt as though she was rising, moving towards whatever afterlife existed as the heavy sadness that pushed against her chest lifted.

Pain erupted in her body, dragging her mind back. Her eyes flew open. She wasn't in the water anymore. She was lying near the dock. Hailey was so grateful to be alive, she could have kissed its rotting wood, but she was too busy coughing up water.

She inhaled deep glorious breaths of air, ignoring the scratchiness in her throat. Once her lungs stopped burning, she sat up and smiled in relief, finding her friends sitting on the dirt around her.

'Sorry it took me so long to use my powers,' Jayden said, wringing out his jacket.

'Don't worry about it,' Aaron told him, his voice hoarse. 'We're alive, and that's what matters.'

Hailey glanced at the dark water and shivered, remembering the gloom that had pressed against her and dragged her under. 'Did anyone else suddenly get really depressed when they were in there?'

Demi pulled her drenched green jacket closer around her. 'Yeah, that's why I stopped swimming. It seemed pointless.'

'That's why I didn't use my powers at first,' Jayden said. 'I didn't feel like there was a point in saving us. But when I was about to die, my instincts kicked in.' He shrugged. 'And here we are--alive.'

Alec climbed to his feet, water dripping from his clothes to the muddy ground. 'That's what Acheron does to you, it causes depression--the river we were just in,' he added when everyone stared at him blankly.

'The river of woe,' Hailey said, remembering Amathia mentioning it in class.

It was the river you had to cross to get into the Underworld, which made the cavern they were in the entrance. She stood up and frowned. She hadn't had a clear image of what the Underworld's entrance would look like, but she definitely thought it would look a little more foreboding than the arching tunnel in front of her.

The tunnel was high enough that a giant could have walked through it without having to duck too low, but other than that, it was your average tunnel, having jagged rock walls and a hard-packed dirt floor. There were no cobwebs, skeletons, or rats from what Hailey could see.

Demi shuffled to Hailey's side. 'I expected something a little more... creepy,' she said in a voice tinged with disappointment.

'I thought Cerberus was meant to guard the entrance,' Jayden remarked, peering down the dark tunnel.

'It's been almost twenty centuries since the gods died.' Alec raked a hand through his wet hair. 'I don't think monsters live that long.'

'Well, just in case you're wrong, I'll have the wand ready,' Hailey said, her grip tightening around it. As long as she had it, they'd be safe--at least that's what she was hoping.

'Um, would you mind using it to dry us off?' Demi asked, trying to brush off the dirt clinging to her wet clothes, but only managing to turn it to mud.

Water dripped from the wand's moonstone tip as Hailey spun the wand around her and her friends and said, ' _Aom_. _Svatr._ ' Her soaked clothes burned with warmth, like she was sitting in front of a crackling fire, and were dry within two seconds--even the putrid smell of the Acheron River evaporated, leaving her and everyone else smelling like clothes fresh out of the dryer.

'Let's get this over with,' Aaron said, marching into the tunnel.

Hailey followed behind him, the wand raised, ready to shoot a sleeping spell at anything that moved. She wrinkled her nose against the rotten-eggs smell that seemed to be getting stronger the further down the tunnel she crept. She wondered what would be waiting for them on the other side. She hoped it would be the Erinyes with their backs turned. _That 'd make things easy_. All she'd have to do was flick the wand, and they'd be asleep before they'd even whirled around.

The last of the dim light feeding into the tunnel from the entrance ebbed, casting them into darkness. Hailey was tempted to use the wand to light the way, but didn't want to risk alerting their presence to anyone--or anything.

'I think we're almost at the tunnel's end,' Aaron whispered back to them.

Hailey peeked past him; a faint flickering light was coming from somewhere ahead, revealing that the tunnel veered to the right a few yards down. Her fingertips tingled, but she didn't need their warning to know there was danger waiting for them.

Keeping the wand held out, she vigilantly followed Aaron towards the light. When she reached it, she sucked in a deep breath and turned the corner, preparing to enter the Underworld.

Ice swarmed through her veins as her legs froze in place and she silently screamed, realising that what she'd walked through hadn't been the entrance to the Underworld, but its pre-entrance.

The true entrance loomed in front of her now, lit with flaming torches, and it became alarmingly obvious that Alec had been wrong about Cerberus being dead.

She'd grown up hearing stories about the monster who guarded the Underworld's entrance. It had been described as a three-headed dog. She'd always imagined it as a snarling pit-bull with two extra heads--something more frightening than blood-freezing petrifying.

But now that she was standing in front of the primeval monster, she realised that whoever had used "dog" as an adjective to describe it had clearly been blind, because it was nothing like a dog.

Its four legs were double the height of Hailey, and its three monstrous heads glowered down at her with burning red eyes. Strings of drool dripped from its snarling mouths, sizzling on the ground.

A guttural growl rumbled inside the beast's throats, and it took a step towards them.

'Use the wand, Hailey!' Jayden shouted.

'Quickly!' Aaron barked, raising his hands to hold Cerberus back with his force field.

Hailey forced her arm to unfreeze and aimed the wand with a trembling hand.

'Wait!' Alec cried, darting in front of her.

Hailey's hand faltered. She stared at Alec with wide eyes, too shocked to form words. _Does he want Cerberus to eat him?_

'Alec, what are you doing?' Demi gaped. 'Get back!'

Despite having a giant three-headed monster breathing down his neck, Alec appeared the picture of calmness. 'It's okay,' he told them. 'Cerberus only attacks if you try to _leave_ the Underworld. It won't hurt us if we're walking _into_ the Underworld.'

'Alec, STOP!' Aaron yelled as Alec skirted around his force field.

Alec ignored him and marched beneath Cerberus. He paused halfway under the monster and stared back at them. 'See.'

Hailey waited for Cerberus to crush Alec with one of its paws. But the monster didn't appear to even notice he was standing under it, with its burning eyes remaining fixed on Hailey, Demi, Jayden, and Aaron.

'Incredible.' Demi reached out a hand like she was about to pet the beast.

'Don't.' Aaron's eyes screamed with admonishment, and Demi pulled her hand back. 'It might be waiting for us to let our guard down before it attacks. Now get back here, Alec, so Hailey can use the wand.'

Alec didn't move. 'No. We don't know what using the wand on Cerberus could do. It might alert the Erinyes. I promise it's safe to walk past it.'

Hailey had to admit Alec had a point. There could be some weird magic down here that'd let the Erinyes know if anything happened to their guard dog. Plus, Cerberus wasn't really doing anything but growling and staring at them--he hadn't even attacked Aaron's force field yet.

'Alec might be right,' Jayden said. 'I think we should hold off on using the wand.'

Aaron shook his head, ready to keep protesting.

Hailey put a hand on his shoulder. 'Come on, Aaron. You've known Alec the longest. Has he ever been wrong about anything?'

A long silence ensued. 'No,' Aaron finally said. His hands dropped to his sides, lowering his force field.

'Just make sure you don't get any drool on you--it's poisonous,' Alec warned.

_Of course it is_.

_This is insane,_ Hailey thought, edging forward with her friends. Her eyes stayed locked on Cerberus as she inched her way towards Alec, ready to use the wand if the monster decided there was too much movement going on for its likings.

But the most Cerberus did was growl.

Hailey sidestepped its drool, which smoked and sizzled on the dirt like burning oil, and reached Alec. Heat poured from the monster's body over Hailey, and she pressed a hand to her nose to block out the beast's putrid rotten-eggs scent.

'Are you sure you want to do this?' Alec asked her. 'Because once we go into the Underworld, there won't be any turning back.'

_No_ was what she wanted to say. She was scared out of her mind already, and they weren't even in the Underworld yet. But she couldn't afford to be a coward now. 'Yes,' she told Alec. 'We're going to fix this ourselves.'

Hailey dodged Cerberus's powerful tail and darted to the black iron gates he was guarding, which towered a hundred-feet high. Her friends gathered around her as the gates creaked open, revealing another cavern circled with flaming torches.

The iron gates slammed shut behind them the second they stepped through. Hailey gulped. There really was no going back now. They were prisoners of the Underworld, more or less. But she promised herself it wouldn't be for long.

This cavern had two tunnels. The one on the right was dimly lit by torches that cast a foreboding glow on the ground, which was piled with layers of decaying bones-- _human_ bones, Hailey realised with a gulp, trying not to look at the skulls and their empty eye sockets.

The other tunnel looked entirely out of place. A bright light poured from it like sunshine, illuminating the glistening flowers growing over its walls, and the lustrous green grass on the ground.

Hailey veered towards it, enraptured to see what magical place lay on the other side. A hand on her shoulder stopped her.

Jayden shook his head. 'We're not going down that one--it's the Elysian Fields.' He nudged his head towards the other tunnel. 'The Erinyes will be in Tartarus.'

Hailey gazed back at the enchanting tunnel, desiring to enter it even more now. The Elysian Fields were said to be pure paradise: a place designed by Hades to reward dedicated humans for their worshipping of the gods so that they could live out the rest of their lives in luxury. She wanted to see inside, to see what luxury meant. _Pegasi for transportation? A room that conjures anything you want --like a dessert buffet?_

Demi was already at the entrance. 'We could just take a peek,' she suggested, touching a bud on the wall, which blossomed into a bright blue flower that smelled like fruit tingles and had petals that sparkled like diamonds.

'No,' Aaron said firmly. 'People are being tortured in that tunnel'--he pointed to the one on the right--'because of us. We're not taking any detours.'

Demi turned away from the flower. 'Okay. First we'll save everyone, and _then_ we'll come back and take a peek.'

'Come on, Alec.' Aaron grabbed his arm and yanked him away from the tunnel. 'I'm sure you'll find Tartarus just as fascinating as the Elysian Fields.'

Bile rose in Hailey's throat as she gazed at the decaying bones and thought of the thousands of people who'd died here. She took some relief in the fact that the bones looked ancient--all yellow and crumbling to dust--which meant, she hoped, no one had died since the Erinyes had reopened the Underworld. It was bad enough knowing people were being tortured because of her, but she wouldn't be able to live with herself if anyone had been killed.

'We can't walk over them.' Demi recoiled beside her. 'Those are people.'

'Not anymore,' Aaron countered, a tone of sorrow in his voice. 'Now they're just bones.' As if to reiterate his point, he stepped into the tunnel, cracking a skull beneath his foot.

Demi looked horrified, as if Aaron had gleefully stomped on someone's head.

Jayden wrapped an arm around her. 'I know this is awful. But if it helps, you can think of them as sticks.'

'Sticks,' Demi said. 'They're just sticks--that look a lot like bones.' She closed her eyes for a second, and when she opened them, her features hardened. 'Come on, let's stop standing around and save some people so we can come back and check out the Elysian Fields.'

Gripping the wand tightly, Hailey edged into the tunnel with her friends. Her other hand was ready to clasp over her mouth, but the tunnel smelled of mustiness rather than rotting flesh. Even so, she couldn't hold back the waves of nausea that washed over her as bones cracked and crumbled beneath her shoes, sending bone dust scattering into the air. She tried to think of the bones as sticks, as Jayden had suggested, but it wasn't working.

With every fibula, tibia, and ribcage she crushed, Hailey couldn't help but think of the person it had belonged to. Maybe the hand she'd just pulverised had belonged to someone the same age as her who'd stolen a measly piece of bread and been thrown in here by the Erinyes as punishment.

'Hailey, get ready.'

Aaron's voice snapped her back to reality. She braced herself for unthinkable horrors as she neared the end of the tunnel. She imagined people screaming in hunger and thirst, while others wreathed on the ground in pain and insanity.

What she didn't expect was what she found.

Forty feet below her was a colossal circular pit crowded by hundreds of people, most of them wearing jumpsuits. Dirt and mud caked their skin and clothes, and the reek of body odour hung heavy in the air.

They appeared to be separated into three groups. One group bordered the pit's walls, swinging pickaxes at the rock, which glittered with a plethora of buried jewels and metals. A second group lumbered around with squeaking mine carts, collecting the hunks of rock mined by the first group. And a third group stood at a long table, chiselling away at the rocks brought to them by the second group, freeing rubies, diamonds, gold, silver, and many other precious stones, polishing them until they sparkled in the flickering flames from the torches lighting the pit.

From what Hailey could see, no one was being tortured. _That 's a good thing._ Another good thing was that she and her friends stood on a ledge above the pit, which meant they had a better view to find the Erinyes.

Hailey assumed they'd automatically stick out among the crowd, but she was having a hard time spotting even one. And the pit had about twenty tunnels carved into its walls. _What if the Erinyes are through one of them?_ Hailey shuddered, not wanting to think about what horrors the tunnels might lead to.

'I see one.'

'Where?' Hailey asked Jayden.

'Over there... Hey, where'd she go?'

'Trespassing is a crime.'

Hands rammed into Hailey's back, shoving her off the ledge.

She screamed, arms flailing wildly as the ground soared towards her.

**28**

**Tartarus**

Hailey squeezed her eyes shut, bracing for bone-shattering pain.

None come.

Tentatively, she opened her eyes, inhaling sharply. The ground was inches from her face, and she hovered above it as if she'd suddenly gained the ability to levitate. Her friends were suspended around her, and judging by the stunned look on Aaron's face, he hadn't used his force field to break their fall.

They floated above the ground a few more seconds before dropping. Hailey shot to her feet and pointed the wand at the Erinys leering down at her. The creature dove from the ledge, her tattered red dress flowing out as she extended her long black nails like talons and aimed for Hailey.

' _NNAST!_ ' Hailey shouted.

A shrill cry like a screeching hawk rang from the Erinys's cracked lips as she soared backwards and slammed against the ledge, a few rocks shaking loose and pelting against the ground. Hailey advanced, preparing to finish her off when someone shoved her aside, sending her toppling to the dirt.

She lifted her head in time to see an Erinys tackle Aaron, swiping at him with her talons. Aaron roared in pain.

'Get off him!' Demi launched at the Erinys, only to get backhanded and sent flying into a group of people who'd abandoned their work to stare at the commotion.

Jayden sprinted to Demi's crumpled body just as another Erinys soared towards Alec. Hailey aimed the wand. ' _Evat --_' Scorching flames erupted in her head--at least that's what it felt like--and the wand slipped from her hand.

The flames intensified, making her feel like her head was about to melt, and she screamed. Then something even worse happened: she plunged into the memory of her dad dying.

The memory pressed against her chest, making it impossible to breathe. _My fault. All my fault. He 's dead because of me._

'Hailey!' She was dimly aware of her friends calling her name before their screams joined hers.

Hailey dug her nails into her head, trying to banish the memory back to the dark part of her mind it had escaped from. But it wouldn't go away. She watched her dad die over and over again. 'I'm sorry,' she cried, feeling warm blood trickle down her face as her nails broke skin.

She couldn't bear it anymore. She screamed louder than she'd ever screamed in her life, praying she'd pass out.

The pain vanished, taking the memory of her dad dying with it.

Slowly, Hailey's surroundings swirled back into focus and she regained her breath. Jayden cradled an unconscious Demi, and a few feet away knelt Alec, looking as though he was about to throw up. Aaron looked just as pale, but he was on his feet, his palms raised at the Erinyes, who snarled and bared their pointed teeth.

_Thank the Tyches the Erinyes ' torturous powers have a weakness when it comes to force fields_, Hailey thought, forcing her body upright. 'Is Demi okay?'

Jayden nodded. 'Yeah, just knocked out.'

She grimaced when she saw the claw marks on Aaron's face. Claw marks that would have been her own if he hadn't shoved her out of the way. Sweat trickled from his brow. 'I can't hold them back much longer. They're too powerful.'

'It's time to end this.'

'No, Jayden!'

Hailey whipped around in time to see Jayden pick up the wand, and Alec lunging forward to stop him.

But he was too slow.

' _Evatatz_ ,' Jayden shouted, aiming for the Erinyes.

At first Hailey didn't know why Alec had tried to stop him, but she soon understood. Aaron's force field became visible, rippling like water. And then Jayden collapsed-- _the spell ricocheted!_

Hailey reached to grab him too late, shouting his name as his head cracked against the ground. She collapsed to her knees beside him, trying to shake him awake.

'My force field is weakening,' Aaron warned in a strained voice, his hands dropping a few inches. 'If you're planning to do something, do it now!'

Alec grabbed the wand before Hailey could. ' _Unatat_ ,' he said, pointing it at Jayden.

Jayden's eyes flicked open. 'You're okay,' Hailey said with a sigh. She turned to ask Alec to wake Demi up, too, but he was already using his powers to step through Aaron's force field. Before he could open his mouth, the Erinyes' crimson eyes pinned him.

Alec froze for a second, and then crumpled to his knees, screaming.

The agony in his cries pierced Hailey, making her want to scream too. She couldn't let this go on any longer. Aaron's force field collapsed, and she vaulted forward, her fingers curling around the wand as she hit the ground. ' _EVATATZ_!' she yelled, swishing the wand at the Erinyes before they had a chance to use their powers on her again.

The Erinyes' eyes rolled into the backs of their heads, and they collapsed into a pile. Hailey stared at them, waiting to see if they'd get back up.

But they stayed lifeless on the ground.

'You've doomed us all!' someone shrieked. Hailey had been so busy fighting the Erinyes, she'd forgotten about the hundreds of people circled around her. A woman wearing a tattered orange jumpsuit gazed at the Erinyes in horror. 'You have no idea what you've done.' She turned back to the other prisoners, who shared her look of terror. 'Get back to work and maybe they'll spare us.'

The prisoners separated, scurrying back to what they'd been doing before Hailey and her friends had caused a scene.

Aaron scratched his head. 'What are they doing?'

'I don't think they understand the Erinyes aren't going to wake up,' Alec replied, stumbling towards them.

Hailey climbed to her feet. 'They're not going to get up,' she called out, trying to speak over the din of hammering. 'We came here to take you back home--or, for some of you, prison.' She thought it wise to add that last bit in case any of the _real_ prisoners thought they didn't have to return to jail.

Not one person acknowledged that she'd spoken; they continued to work, not daring to look back at Hailey and her friends.

'We said we're taking you home.' Jayden was greeted with the same disregard as Hailey.

'I've had enough of this.' Aaron marched over to a man dragging a cart of sparkling rocks. He grabbed him by the arm. 'Come with us, you don't have to mine anymore.'

The man shoved Aaron, sending him toppling to the ground before continuing on with his cart.

_This is ridiculous._ Hailey didn't see them getting back to the Academy anytime soon if everyone continued ignoring them. _How do you convince someone they 're free if they won't listen to you?_

As if reading her mind Jayden said, 'I don't think we need their consent. Just tell the wand to take them back to where they came from.'

'Good thinking.' Hailey raised the wand and said, ' _Oatkut --_'

'WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE?!'

The prisoners dropped to their knees, bowing their heads towards two people standing in front of the tunnel directly across from the ledge the Erinys had shoved Hailey off.

The two figures disappeared in a swirl of black mist and flowers before Hailey could get a good look at them. They rematerialised next to the Erinyes' unconscious bodies.

Hailey's jaw dropped as terror clawed at her heart. _It can 't be!_ she thought. _It 's impossible!_

One of the figures was draped in black robes that emphasised his sallow skin. The other was a woman, who bore none of the man's hardness; her features, in comparison, were soft and delicate, like the ring of daffodil flowers resting on her head.

Hailey blinked, waiting for their faces to morph into other people. When they didn't she gulped. Hades and Persephone, King and Queen of the Underworld, loomed before her.

_The gods are alive!_

Hades's eyes flared with rage. 'What have you done to my Erinyes?'

His words reminded Hailey that she was holding the wand. ' _Evatatz_.'

Hades swiped his hand, as if swatting away a fly, leaving Hailey gaping--he'd deflected the spell!

Hades curled out his fingers. 'That does not belong to you.'

Hailey would have laughed if she hadn't been so terrified. Did he really expect her to just give him the wand? She opened her mouth. But before she could utter a single syllable of Goldarin, an invisible force wrenched the wand from her grasp, and it flew straight into Hades's hand, where it shone with a brilliant white light that enveloped the pit.

As the light faded, Aaron charged at Hades.

Hades focused the wand on him, a smile of pure malice tweaking his lips. ' _Nnast_.'

Aaron soared backwards, crashing onto several bowing prisoners.

'Aaron!' Jayden and Alec shouted, running towards his crumpled body.

Hailey whipped back around to face the god of the dead, anger washing away her fear. She stepped towards him.

'Don't,' Persephone warned. 'We won't harm you if you come with us.'

'Tell that to Aaron.'

Hailey had barely turned her head before Demi, who had regained consciousness, dove for Hades.

Hades darted out of the way, laughing coldly when Demi hit the ground with a thud.

'You take Persephone,' Demi whispered in Hailey's ear as she helped her back up. 'I'll get the wand.' Hailey couldn't believe how casually she said it, as though they were facing two ordinary people and not two gods who could send them sailing across the room with a wave of their hand. But they didn't have a choice. They needed to fight.

Hailey and Demi whipped around, preparing to pounce.

Hades was waiting for them. 'I tire of this game, human children.' He flicked the wand. ' _Nnast_.'

What felt like a charging minotaur slammed into Hailey, sweeping her off her feet. Her skull cracked against the ground, sending dots dancing across her vision. Her head screamed with pain when she tried to lift it.

The pit blurred before everything went black.

**29**

**Hades and Persephone**

Hailey's mind returned to her body. She grimaced at the throbbing pain in her head, wondering why it hurt so much, and blinked her eyes open; iron bars greeted her.

'We're in a dungeon.' Alec sat next to her, leaning against a rock wall. A flaming torch flickered above him, casting their barred cell in a dim glow. 'So much for our plan.'

_A dungeon!_ Hailey fought the urge to vomit as she remembered where she was--the Underworld. She'd come here to save the prisoners and ended up one herself.

_This can 't be happening_.

She lurched to her feet, ignoring her pounding head's protests, and staggered to the bars, wrapping her fingers around the warm metal. She yanked as hard as she could, but the bars didn't budge.

Tears burned her throat. She was trapped in Tartarus, and there were two gods on the loose, maybe more. What was going to happen to her and her friends? Would the gods force them to work in the mine? Kill them? Would Hailey ever see her mum again, or would she die down here?

_Stop it_ , she ordered herself, swiping away a rogue tear. _We 're going to get out of this_. Hailey didn't know how, but they were, because someone needed to tell the world what was going on before it was too late and half the population became enslaved here.

'What happened?' Jayden slowly sat up, pressing a hand to his temple. 'I feel like a cyclops hit me over the head with a club.'

'The wand brought back Hades, and he kicked our arses is what happened.' Aaron stood in front of the iron bars that separated their cell from the one next door. He rattled them. 'We need to get out of here.'

'Tell me about it.' Demi, who had a bruised and bloody cheek from where the Erinys had backhanded her, was pacing a few feet away from Hailey. 'We don't even have beds--or a toilet--all we have is this stupid dirt to lie on.' She kicked the ground, dirt puffing up around her.

'I can get us out.'

Hailey's gaze snapped to Alec. 'How?'

'With my Heracles power.'

'So what are you waiting for? Let's go,' Aaron prompted.

Alec didn't budge from the ground. 'Not yet.'

Aaron looked ready to shake him. 'Why? Hades and Persephone could be coming back for us right now.'

'That's exactly why not. If we make our escape now, we could run into them on the way out, and we'd end up back here, or somewhere worse.'

Aaron cracked his knuckles, ready for a fight. 'We can take them.'

Alec scoffed. 'Like last time? How's the face, by the way?'

Aaron tentatively touched the angry gashes on his cheek. He flinched. 'Okay, point taken. So, what's your plan?'

'We wait until after they come for us. When they bring us back here, then we'll make our move.'

'I don't know about that.' Hailey leaned her back against the bars, their warmth sending beads of sweat down her neck. 'I don't think Hades will be too happy about us breaking in here and attacking the Erinyes. What if he comes and kills us?'

'He won't,' Jayden said. 'If he wanted us dead, he would have killed us in the pit. Besides, if the history books are anything to go by, Hades likes to see people suffering, not dead. I think we should do what Alec says and wait to escape. We're only going to get one chance, and we can't screw it up.'

Demi sighed theatrically. 'All right, I guess I can handle sleeping on dirt for a little bit.'

Hailey wasn't fussed on the idea of sitting around and waiting, especially when it meant putting the world in jeopardy. But she figured Hades and Persephone had been awake for almost seven months now and hadn't attacked, so the world could probably wait another few hours. 'Okay. We'll do it your way. But--'

'Shh,' Aaron hissed. 'Someone's coming.'

Everyone fell quiet.

Hailey heard it now too: footsteps echoing in the distance, getting closer and closer.

A minute passed before the being they belonged to appeared outside their cell. Hailey's heart sank.

It was an Erinys. _Hades must have used the wand to wake them back up_.

Hailey met the creature's eyes, which glowed bright red in the flickering torchlight. She tensed for pain, assuming it was there for revenge.

None came.

'Come,' the Erinys snapped in a voice rough like sandpaper.

Aaron knocked the bars with his hand. 'You see the problem with that is we're locked in, so I'm afraid we can't comply.'

' _Dazatr_.' The iron bars slid open with a creaking moan. 'Come. Now.'

Aaron stepped in front of everyone, staring down the Erinys as if she didn't have the ability to melt his brain with her gaze. 'We're not going anywhere unless you tell us where you're taking us.'

The Erinys's eyes gleamed with delight, as if she'd been hoping he'd say that. A second later, Aaron collapsed to his knees, screaming.

'Stop it!' Hailey cried. 'We'll go with you.'

The Erinys held him in her torturous stare for a few more moments before releasing him and stalking away.

'That was _really_ stupid,' Jayden chided Aaron.

'Really stupid,' Hailey reiterated. 'Are you okay?'

Aaron nodded, his eyes dazed. 'I'm fine.' He forced a smile. 'I couldn't resist.'

Demi whacked his arm. 'Don't do it again.'

'We better hurry up and follow her,' Alec said, voice shaky, 'before she comes back.'

They practically sprinted through the door and began trailing the Erinys, who led them through a torch-lit hallway of empty cells that looked as dark and depressing as the one they'd been in.

Hailey felt like a toddler being led to a Nemean lion's den. _There 's only one of her; you can take her,_ a voice in Hailey's head urged. Her legs tensed, ready to pounce on the Erinys and pin her down while her friends choked the creature out. But then she remembered she didn't have the wand anymore, which meant the only way to escape the Underworld was through the pit. She would bet her powers that that was where the other two Erinyes were, and she doubted she and her friends would be able to take them out too--they'd barely survived them the first time, and that was _with_ the wand.

With a defeated sigh, Hailey silenced the voice in her head. Maybe if her, Demi, and Jayden's powers weren't useless, she would have at least tried to make a run for it. But without the sky, vegetation, or water, they might as well have been ordinary humans. Only Alec and Aaron could use theirs, and super strength and a force field would only get them so far.

The last thing Hailey wanted to do was ruin any chance of them escaping by taking on the Erinyes now. If they lost--which she was pretty sure they would--the Erinyes would probably kill them. Their escape would have to wait until later, like Alec said.

They continued down the fire-lit tunnel, their footsteps echoing off the rock walls and ceiling.

Hailey clutched her pendant, the gold heart warm against her skin. She had a bad feeling the Erinys was taking them to Hades instead of to work in the mine. Jayden had made a good point about the god not wanting them dead, but Hailey wasn't entirely convinced. What if Hades hadn't killed them in the pit because he wanted to have a little fun with them before incinerating them with a fireball?

They reached the end of the tunnel and shuffled back into the mine, where the prisoners had returned to work, their pickaxes clanging against rock and their carts squeaking as they mined precious metals and jewels from the walls. The other two Erinyes patrolled the pit, ready to turn their gazes on anyone slacking off. One of them looked at Hailey, who tensed, waiting for her head to explode in flames, but the Erinys merely smirked, as if Hailey's fear pleased her.

Her fear only grew when the Erinys guiding them led them into the tunnel Hades and Persephone had materialised in front of. Her instincts to flee intensified, and she glanced back at the ledge in the pit--the one that led to Cerberus. It was so close. If she and her friends ran fast enough, maybe Aaron could lift them up there with his force field. She looked back at Jayden, as they moved further away from the only escape route, to see if he'd changed his mind about them blindly following the Erinys. He gave her a reassuring smile and mouthed _it 's going to be okay_.

_It 's going to be okay_. _It 's going to be okay_, Hailey told herself over and over again. But when she reached the end of the tunnel, she realised things were very far from being okay.

A colossal cavern stretched before her with a fiery sky that flowed like lava and rained ash, making the whole place smell like smoke.

'Move,' the Erinys barked, shoving Hailey.

She tripped forward, gasping as the intensity of the cavern's heat enveloped her, making her feel as though she'd fallen into an oven. She stumbled to her knees and silently screamed, her body paralysing.

A dark abyss extended below her.

She had been too busy gazing at the burning sky to notice the cavern was one big bottomless pit. She definitely noticed now. And was too terrified to even breathe, afraid she might fall into the chasm and find out just how endless it was. _Can a person fall forever?_

'Hailey, are you okay?' Demi's hysterical voice asked.

Hailey couldn't answer. She'd forgotten how to speak.

'Get up,' the Erinys hissed.

'Don't,' Hailey heard Alec beg in a quiet voice. She assumed one of her friends--probably Aaron--had been about to push the Erinys over the edge. She agreed with Alec that it was a _really_ bad idea. The Erinys would dematerialise as she fell and rematerialise back on the ground and probably knock them off in vengeance.

The sound of someone's footsteps coming towards Hailey turned her blood to ice. The Erinys was going to push her!

A hand touched her arm and she jerked. 'It's okay,' Jayden told her in a soothing voice, helping her back up. 'You're okay.'

'Enough. Move. Now.'

'Okay,' Jayden said. 'We're going.' He looked back at Hailey. 'We have to cross the bridge.'

The bridge was a six-foot wide black crystal walkway that crossed through the abyss to a mountain of rock, where a palace perched. It had no guardrail or rope to stop a person from falling off.

'I can do it,' Hailey said more to herself than to Jayden.

He nodded and edged up to the bridge, bravely taking the lead across. Aaron gave Alec, who looked ready to pass out, a gentle nudge forward before following after him.

Demi gripped Hailey's hand. 'Come on, Hails. We'll do it together.'

Fixing her eyes on the palace forty yards ahead, Hailey shuffled onto the crystal bridge and began inching her way across, reminding herself with every shaking footstep that she didn't have a choice. That the Erinys would probably push her off if she stopped walking. Ash showered down around her, sticking to her hair and clothes, and stinging her nostrils with its acridness. But that was a minor irritation compared to the suffocating heat that burned her throat with every tentative breath she took.

As Hailey neared the palace, she could see it was constructed from iron, which looked superheated in the reflection of the blazing sky, making its pointed spires look like red hot pokers.

They scurried from the bridge onto the rocky terrain surrounding the palace, and followed the Erinys towards the big hunk of metal just ahead. Rocks loosed beneath Hailey's feet and poked into the soles of her shoes as she walked, almost causing her to lose her balance with every step. She was careful not to tread on the white flowers growing between the rocks, which looked like clusters of miniature lilies. Hailey remembered their name with a shudder: asphodel--the flowers of the dead.

They halted in front of a set of thick black doors that were so high a cyclops could have fit through them.

' _Dazatr_ ,' the Erinys rasped.

The doors opened with a slow creak that you'd expect to hear when entering a haunted house. Considering Hades was the god of the dead, Hailey wouldn't have been surprised if there were a few shades lurking around the palace--angry spirits seeking vengeance for whatever horrible end they'd met here in this place of nightmares.

With trembling hands, Hailey stepped inside, bracing herself for intense heat, but to her surprise the palace was cool--well, cooler than the volcano outside.

And what a hideous palace it was, being dark and dingy, with an obsidian floor that was barely illuminated by the candelabras hanging from the ceiling. _At least it doesn 't smell as strongly of ash in here_, Hailey thought, grateful to get away from the suffocating smell of smoke.

The long room the Erinys herded them into was hardly different. The only element of brightness came from a jewel path, which sparkled with about every variety of gem you could think of--rubies, emeralds, sapphires, garnet, and opals, to name a few. At the end of it, perched on a black diamond throne, was Hades. Next to him sat Persephone, her clear crystal throne adorned with blooming wild flowers like poppies and violets.

'You may leave us, Tisiphone,' Hades said.

The thud of the doors echoed around the bare room as the Erinys left. Hailey gulped. They were trapped in a room with two gods, who could probably kill them with a snap of their fingers.

'Come forward.' Hades's voice was brusque and imperious.

No one moved.

'I said come-- _hdaounaoa_.' He flicked the wand.

A force shoved Hailey from behind, driving her forward until she stood feet from Hades and Persephone in their raised thrones. Power seemed to radiate off them, giving the air an almost electric feel. She gulped again, the tingling in her fingertips--which hadn't stopped since she'd entered the Underworld--amplifying.

Hades surveyed them with eyes as dark and cold as coal. 'Why did you come to the Underworld?'

'To stop you,' Hailey said, surprised by the braveness of her voice.

An amused smile curved his lips. 'You are children. I am a god. It was foolish for you to think you could intervene with my plans.' He held up the wand, the milky blue colours in its moonstone tip glinting in the light from the burning candelabra chandelier above them. 'Where did you find this?'

Hailey hesitated, not sure if she should tell him. Hades wanting to know where they'd gotten the wand could be the one thing keeping them alive.

'I found it in a griffin's nest,' Demi answered. 'I'll take it back now thanks.'

Jayden grabbed Demi before she could do something stupid--like try taking the wand from Hades.

Persephone leaned forward, wonder sparkling in her magenta eyes. 'You fought a griffin?'

'No doubt with the powers you stole from my kin,' Hades remarked acidly.

'We didn't steal them,' Aaron countered.

Hades's eyes flared with anger so intense that Hailey thought his gaze might just vaporise them.

_Oh Medusa_ , Hailey cursed silently, thinking Hades was about to kill them. She needed to think of a way out. Now!

Persephone placed a hand on his knee and shook her head as his black eyes met hers. Hades took a deep breath and turned back to them, his anger concealed behind a thinly veiled layer of control. 'How did you know of our reawakening?'

'There was a spell,' Hailey said, deciding it was just as dangerous to withhold information from Hades as it was to tell him. 'It spoke of waking someone up. We thought it had only woken up the Erinyes--we didn't know you and Persephone were down here too.'

Hades nodded musingly, leaning back in his throne. 'Hecate must have foreseen your discovery.'

_Hecate? Of course._ Hailey already knew Hecate created the wand, which meant she was the one who wrote the reawakening spell. _She must have saved Hades and Persephone by putting them to sleep_. 'Is she the one who put you to sleep?' Hailey asked, wanting confirmation.

She regretted her curiosity the moment Hades turned on her with a look of astonishment, as though he'd never been asked a question before. She held her breath and waited to see if he'd lose his temper.

A tense few seconds passed before his gaze relaxed. 'I suppose you did awaken us, so perhaps should be rewarded with the knowledge of how it was possible.' He twirled the wand in his hand. 'This was her wand.'

'What?!' Hailey exclaimed without thinking.

'We thought that was the wand she created for humankind,' Alec said, looking as surprised by his sudden outburst of words as Hailey was by her own.

'A wand for humankind?' Hades's eyes overflowed with abhorrence. 'You humans are insects compared to us. Hecate never would have created a wand for your unworthy race.'

'Hey--'

Jayden clamped a hand over Demi's mouth before she could insult Hades back. Hailey didn't appreciate being called an insect or worthless, but if she told Hades to jump in the River Styx, she doubted even Persephone would be able to calm his temper.

'Why was the spell written in English if it wasn't meant for humans?' Alec asked, choosing his words carefully.

'Hecate was smart,' Hades said. 'She used this wand to put my wife, the Erinyes, and me into a deep slumber that would protect us from dying with the other gods. She created a spell that would awaken us. She wrote it to appear in the language of whomever found it, and for it to translate into Goldarin when read.' Hades's gaze shifted over the five of them. 'I didn't expect the humans who awakened us to be children, and I certainly didn't expect you to come looking for me.'

'Someone had to stop you,' Aaron said. 'You can't just go around kidnapping people and torturing them.'

'If I don't punish them for their crimes, who will? I am King of the Underworld, and it's my duty to ensure retribution is served to all wrongdoers.' He rubbed his chin as he considered them. 'Now I am faced with the question of what to do with you.'

'They are children, Hades.' Persephone's voice was soft and sweet compared to his. 'We should release them.'

'Release them? They have learned too much. They will inform the humans of our return before we're able to wake the others.'

_Others? Please don 't tell me the Olympians are alive too_.

'Can they at least stay in Elysium?' Persephone asked. 'They're innocent. They don't belong in Tartarus.'

Hades drummed his fingers against his throne. 'Very well. You may stay in Elysium until our plans are realised.'

Persephone moved to stand up. 'I will escort them.'

'No,' Hades said, motioning for her to stay seated. 'I will take them.'

Hailey tensed. She didn't trust Hades one bit. It seemed likely he had agreed to take them to the Elysian Fields to avoid upsetting Persephone, and that he had every intention of killing them when they got there.

Hades flicked his hand at the five of them, and Hailey realised with sickening dread that he didn't care about Persephone's feelings after all.

He was going to kill them then and there.

**30**

**The Elysian Fields**

Hailey braced herself to be flung across the room like she'd been in the pit.

But instead of hurling through the air towards an iron wall, the room started spinning, swirling into a haze of black.

When the world reformed, Hailey was standing back in the Underworld's entrance, staring at the bright tunnel to the Elysian Fields.

Black mist swirled in front of the tunnel as Hades materialised. A cruel smirk curved his lips. 'My, my, you all look defensive. Nevertheless, I have no intention of harming you, _providing_ you don't resist.' His eyes glistened expectantly, as if he wanted them to attack.

_Well, too bad_ , Hailey thought. She wasn't about to give him a reason to justify killing them. Beside her Aaron clenched his fists, and she thought for one terrifying second that he was going to charge. But he didn't. And nobody else did either.

Hades's expectancy turned to disappointment. 'Very well. You will remain in Elysium until I say otherwise. But if you attempt to escape from the Underworld, I will treat you like criminals, children or not.' His gaze was hard, leaving no doubt he was being sincere. 'That is, of course, if you survive Fifth.'

'Fifth?' Alec asked.

'Fifth is the fifth descendant of Cerberus,' Hades said, explaining how the three-headed monster had survived for so long. Hades shifted aside. 'You may enter now.' He swiped his hand towards the Elysian Fields, and the invisible force returned to yank Hailey and her friends forward, pitching them through the tunnel, where they landed in a crumpled pile at the other end. 'Remember, no escaping,' Hades growled before disappearing in a swirl of mist.

'Everyone okay?' Aaron asked as they disentangled themselves from one another.

Hailey didn't know if anyone responded. She didn't, being too enraptured by the ethereal music drifting through the air to care about anything else. It made Nerissa and Cleo's singing sound like a screeching harpy.

She forced herself to stand up, and the second she did, she became lost in her surroundings.

A paradise stretched before her, appearing to go on forever in every direction. A sparkling diamond path weaved its way through the vibrant green grass, breaking off into several directions.

One path led to a magnificent garden, where sunflowers, tulips, pansies, and dozens of flowers Hailey didn't recognise, bloomed in dazzling colours. Fruit trees were mixed in among the flowers, the plush silk cushions at their bases offering a comfortable place to relax. A languid river curved its way through the garden, tracing its path from a glistening waterfall.

Another path led to an open area ringed with round tables draped in thin silk cloth, circled by elegant chairs. Banquet tables offering a sumptuous feast were mixed among them. Hailey's mouth watered as the aromatic smells of roast chicken and marinated beef wafted towards her, mingled with the sharp rich scent of cheese, and the sweet smell of chocolate.

She wondered whether Hades had pushed some kind of button to produce the food for them, or if it had been waiting there from the last time humans had occupied the Elysian Fields centuries ago, kept from spoiling by some kind of magic.

She didn't dwell on the thought. Following another path with her eyes, she spotted a white marble temple bordered by polished pillars. She was positive if she entered it, she would find a statue of Hades, and probably Persephone too, waiting to be worshipped.

The final path led to a palace constructed of pure gold, which shone as brightly as the sun in the violet-blue sky.

Hailey gazed expectantly at the sky, waiting to feel a rush of power.

But none came.

Her heart sank; the sky was an illusion, despite how real the fluffy silver clouds appeared.

'Well, this will make our escape a lot easier,' Aaron remarked, his eyes focused on the tunnel and not the Fields. 'We're right near the entrance.' He punched Alec playfully in the arm. 'Guess this means you can save your strength.'

Alec rubbed his shoulder absentmindedly. He wasn't listening to Aaron. He was drinking in the landscape with wide hungry eyes.

'Come on, that's enough time here.' Aaron grabbed Alec by his shirt and dragged him towards the tunnel. 'Let's go everyone.'

Hailey didn't want to go. She wanted to stay and explore every inch of this place.

'No.' Alec dug his heels into the ground. 'We can't go yet.'

'I know you want to take a look around so you can brag to your dad about seeing it, but we've got bigger things to deal with--like not dying. So, let's go.'

Alec dug his heels further into the ground when Aaron tried to pull him away again. 'That's not what I meant. I meant we can't go yet because Hades or an Erinys is probably waiting right outside to see if we'll escape.'

'Oh no you don't.' Jayden caught hold of Demi as she tried to sneak towards the diamond paths.

She pouted. 'Come on, I just wanna have a little walk around.'

'Well, you can walk towards the garden.'

Demi glanced back at the gold palace, which Hailey assumed had been her destination, and then at Jayden. She sighed. 'Fine.'

'No, we're not heading to the garden,' Aaron said before anyone could move. 'We're leaving. Right now.'

'Alec has a good point,' Hailey said. 'Hades probably thinks if we're going to escape, we'll do it straight away. He could be waiting outside to catch us so he can throw us back into the dungeon.' It was a place she never wanted to end up again.

Aaron opened his mouth, looking like he was ready to keep arguing, and then seemed to notice he was outvoted. He shook his head in defeat, releasing Alec. 'Fine. You win. I can't exactly drag all of you out of here. And I suppose we should have a plan anyway.'

Hailey tried to hide her smile as they trailed the diamond path towards the garden. She found it ironic that she suddenly wanted to stay in the Underworld, but the Elysian Fields were a little different to Tartarus--for one thing, there was sunlight.

If things weren't so bad, like there weren't two gods trying to take back over the world, Hailey would have happily stayed there for days, weeks, even months. She could probably even live there and never get bored of the place.

But things were bad. The Elysian Fields would have to wait.

'Everyone ready?' Aaron asked as they positioned themselves around the Elysian Fields's tunnel and prayed enough time had passed for Hades to have gotten bored and left.

Demi gazed back at the gold palace and sighed. 'Yes. But we're coming back here as soon as the gods and Erinyes are taken care of.'

'Agreed,' Hailey and Alec said in unison.

Hailey didn't look back as she left. She needed to focus on what they were about to do, which was probably the most dangerous thing she'd ever done--aside from coming to the Underworld.

_Why do I keep making such dumb decisions?_ she asked herself as she crept down the Underworld's entrance tunnel with her friends. All she ever seemed to do was make things worse, which was why she was doing the smart thing now and trying to find someone more capable of fixing their mistake. Things had gotten way too out of control for her and her friends to handle alone, especially without the wand. Their best chance of saving the world from Hades was to get help from anyone who would believe them when they said the Underworld was back up and running, and that the prophecy was dangerously close to coming true.

But before they could do that, they had to make it out of the Underworld alive, which meant catching a ride on the Acheron River and hoping it dropped them off somewhere close to civilisation and not in the middle of an ocean--their plan strongly relied on having the luck of the Tyches, especially this next part.

_Please, Tyches, don 't let us get eaten_, Hailey prayed as she exited the tunnel with her friends and crept towards the towering black gates. They remained firmly shut, which Hailey was kind of grateful for, considering they were the only thing separating them from the gigantic monster on the other side.

Aaron patted Alec on the back. 'You're up,' he whispered, nudging his head towards Fifth, who had its back to them.

Alec hesitated in front of the gates, clenching and unclenching his hands, before finally blowing out a long breath and passing through the gates. They began creaking slowly open when he was on the other side, thinking someone was about to enter.

Fifth, however, knew better, recognising it as an escape, and whipped around, focusing its six flaming eyes on Alec as a thunderous roar tore from its three mouths; flecks of drool flew from its snouts and sizzled on the dirt.

And then it attacked.

Alec dove out of the way and lost his balance, stumbling to the ground. The monster was quick. It didn't give him a chance to stand up; its heads swung around and launched for him again with snapping teeth.

Aaron leapt in front of Alec, his palms raised towards the frothing beast. Its three heads smacked into his force field.

Fifth roared with fury, ramming its heads against the force field again and again.

'Are you okay?' Hailey asked Alec, helping him up, having bolted through the gates with Demi, Jayden, and Aaron before they could close.

Alec gave a shaky nod. 'Yeah, I think so.'

Sweat poured down Aaron's face, and his hands shook as Fifth clawed at his rippling force field. 'I can't hold it back forever. We have to move.'

Hailey didn't need to be told to run twice. She sprinted across the cavern with her friends, not daring to slow her pace until she was halfway down the pre-entrance tunnel.

'I think - we did it,' Demi puffed, trying to catch her breath.

'Phase one complete,' Aaron agreed, wiping sweat from his forehead.

A loud howl forced them to run again.

They were almost out of the tunnel, which meant they were almost to freedom. All they had to do was jump in the Acheron River and let Jayden change the current so it took them out of Underworld--Hailey just hoped the river didn't drown them with woe before they made it out of this hellhole.

They were mere feet from the end of the tunnel when the tingling in Hailey's fingertips crescendoed. She hadn't felt them prickle so much since...

Hades materialised in a swirl of black mist before them, forcing Hailey and her friends to scramble to a stop. 'Well, well, what do we have here?'

_No, no, no!_ They were so close! It couldn't all be over!

'We're stretching our legs,' Jayden said in a steady voice.

'Yeah, we were,' Demi jumped in. 'We'll head back to the Elysian Fields now.'

'Don't move.' Hades's voice was dangerous and carried the promise of terrible things. 'I do not appreciate deceit.'

'Okay, we were escaping.' Aaron took a step towards Hades. 'We thought we'd have to do it the hard way, but I'm guessing you've got the wand on you.' He lunged forward.

Hades's hand snapped up, and Aaron soared backwards before he could lay so much as a fingertip on the god.

'Aaron!' everyone cried, running to his rescue when he hit the tunnel's rock wall.

He gasped for air. 'Okay - just - winded.'

'I was lenient when I allowed you to reside in Elysium,' Hades snarled in a voice thick with anger. 'And you repay my magnanimity by escaping and attacking me. You are unworthy of my kindness.'

'Please, we're sorry,' Hailey pleaded, sensing their impending death if they didn't get the god's temper under control. 'We just wanted to go home. We promise we won't try to run away again,' she lied.

'I warned you I would treat you like criminals if you tried to escape. I am a god of my word.' Hades flicked his hand.

Black mist enveloped Hailey like a fog. When it dispersed, she expected to find herself back in the dungeon. But she wasn't that lucky. She stood with her friends in a cavern crowded with hundreds of iron hatches. Below them she could hear splashing and moaning, and had to put a hand over her nose to block out the putrid rotten-eggs smell rising from them.

Hades materialised and started peering down the hatches. 'Ah, here's an empty one.' His black eyes glowered over at them. 'Come.'

Aaron shifted in front of Hailey, Demi, Jayden, and Alec. 'We said we were sorry. If you don't want to take us back to the Elysian Fields, then we'll go back to our cell in the dungeon.'

'You do not order me around, human,' Hades growled. 'Now come here and get inside.' He lifted his hand over the hatch, the door banging open against the dirt ground with an echoing thud.

Hailey grabbed Aaron's wrist when she saw him open his mouth to start arguing again. 'You'll just make him angry, and he'll kill us,' she whispered.

'I'm waiting.'

Hailey didn't want to risk Hades losing his temper, so she gingerly edged towards him, keeping her head high so she wouldn't look down the hatches as she went--she wanted to stay naive about what was going to happen to them.

'I don't believe you'll be able to escape from here,' Hades said once they were huddled around him. 'But if you do, be warned, I will kill you. Now get in.' He swiped his hand at them.

An invisible force slammed into Hailey's back, knocking her forward. She screamed, plunging down the hatch into darkness.

**31**

**Mind Games**

A pool of lukewarm water broke Hailey's fall with a splash. She lurched up, the water coming to her waist, as the hatch slammed shut above her, casting her and her friends in a blanket of darkness.

They were trapped--again. _Can this nightmare get any worse?_ Hailey wondered, biting down the urge to cry at how completely and utterly messed up things were.

'Is everyone all right?' Aaron's voice cut through the darkness.

'No,' Demi replied, sounding on the verge of tears. 'We should have stayed in the Elysian Fields. We'll never get out of this. And it smells like a sewer.'

'You're wrong.' Hailey heard a smile in Jayden's voice. 'We're in water, which means I can use my powers to get us out of here--all I need to do is give Alec a boost with a wave, and then he can pass through the hatch and open it from the outside.'

'Uh, did you not hear the part where Hades said he'd kill us if we tried to escape again?' Alec squeaked.

'We won't get caught,' Aaron reassured him.

'We can't stay here, Alec,' Hailey agreed, sweat trickling down her brow and neck. 'We need to warn the world about what's happening before it's too late. I don't want to be responsible for bringing the gods back from the dead.' _Especially when there 's a prophecy that will have everyone looking to me to save the world, _she added to herself.

'So, what are we waiting for?' Demi asked. 'Let's go.'

'We can't go yet,' Alec protested.

'Alec, you heard Hailey--we can't stay here,' Demi told him. 'And I don't think he was really being serious about killing us--it was just a bluff--but we're not going to get caught again anyway, so it really doesn't matter.'

'Well, we _will_ get caught if we leave right now,' Alec argued. 'Hades was waiting for us to escape from the Elysian Fields. So I'd bet my powers he's waiting again.'

'I agree,' Aaron cut in. 'We need to stay put for now. Hades said it'll be a little while before he wakes up the other gods, so I think we can at least wait a day.'

'What?!' Demi exclaimed, kicking the water. 'I can't live down here for a day.'

Hailey wasn't happy about waiting that long to escape again, but it was the smart thing to do. If they got caught making a run for it a second time, Hailey didn't think they'd get a third chance. She wasn't sure if Hades would really kill them, but she didn't think he'd have a problem locking them away somewhere even worse than this and throwing away the key.

'There's one thing I don't understand,' Jayden said. 'Why aren't the other gods awake too? Why do they need Hades to wake them up?'

Hailey had been wondering the same thing. 'Maybe Hecate put them to sleep using something other than her wand, and made it so that Hades could enjoy some freedom before waking them up. It doesn't explain the powers though. How can we have the Olympians' powers if they're alive?'

'Maybe they did die,' Alec mused. 'And maybe Hecate gave Hades a spell to revive them.'

_Was Hecate that powerful? Probably,_ Hailey thought, considering what her wand could do. She wished they'd never found the stupid thing. It was the reason she was trapped in Tartarus facing the possibility of never getting out. Of never seeing her mum again. Of dying down here in this horrible place.

'Do you think they've found us missing yet?' Aaron asked, pulling Hailey from her thoughts.

Hailey wiped at the sweat on her face, wishing she was a Chione so she could use her ice powers to cool this furnace down. 'If they haven't, they will soon.'

'They'll never know where to find us though,' Demi sighed. 'I'm sure the nereids will be happy they've got five less students to worry about.'

Something clicked in Hailey's head--the final piece of a puzzle, she hadn't even realised she'd been working on, sliding into place--and she gasped. _It 's so obvious; how did I miss it?_

'What's wrong?' Alec's voice was tinged with panic. 'Is there something in the water? Is it a snake?'

'I understand it. I understand everything.'

'Understand what?' Demi asked.

'The nereids' plan. It all makes sense now. What they meant about the plan not taking long and about Poseidon coming back--everything makes perfect sense.'

'What do you mean it makes sense?' Jayden prompted.

_Where to begin..._ 'I don't know how, but I think the nereids worked out we found a wand, and that it was Hecate's--they probably knew her entire plan,' Hailey explained. 'They must have known we'd read the spell to wake up Hades and Persephone, which is why Nemertes told the other nereids to be patient because the plan was working. They just needed to wait for Hades to wake up the Olympians. And remember what they said about someone learning its purpose? They were talking about us learning what the spell had done. They were expecting us to come to the Underworld and practically hand the wand back to Hades so he couldn't be stopped. And they probably knew we'd been using the wand to eavesdrop on them, which is why they spent most of their time in the sea--this is all part of their plan.'

'I hate those stupid nereids,' Aaron growled, kicking around in the water.

'It's so obvious,' Alec said. 'We should have seen the connections sooner.'

'I know,' Hailey agreed. 'We can't let them get away with this. We have to get back to the Academy and tell Amathia what her sisters have been up to.'

'I'm sorry I didn't believe you when you said they were psycho, Hails,' Jayden said. 'They're clearly diabolical.'

'I--' Hailey began, but fell quiet, hearing footsteps approaching from above.

The hatch banged open, quadrupling Hailey's heartrate. _Please, Tyches, don 't let it be Hades coming back _ _to kill us._

Someone dropped into the water with a splash, sending a wave spraying over Hailey, who stifled a scream. An Erinys loomed before her, gripping a flaming torch that exaggerated her sickly skin and made her red eyes burn.

Without warning, the Erinys grabbed Jayden by the neck and threw him up through the hatch, where Hailey heard him land with a horrible thud.

Before Hailey could react, the Erinys snaked a hand around her neck, her pointed nails stinging like acid as they bit into her skin, and hurled Hailey into the air as if she weighed nothing. She let out one petrified scream before she slammed onto the ground, her shoulder exploding in pain.

'You okay, Hailey?' Jayden asked, helping her sit up.

Hailey rubbed her aching arm. 'Yeah.'

Aaron was next to fly out of the hatch, followed by a screaming Demi, and then the Erinys sprang out next, holding a blanched Alec by the throat. She released him and stared at Hailey and her friends, as if waiting for them to make a move. 'Come,' she snarled after a few tense seconds.

Hailey, Demi, Jayden, and Aaron hesitated, exchanging unsure looks, but Alec nudged his head towards the Erinys as she slithered away, indicating they should follow. 'We can't ruin our escape plan by doing something stupid now,' he whispered in a barely audible voice.

Reluctantly, Hailey trailed behind the foul creature, assuming she was taking them to work in the mine. She guessed most people would prefer working in a mine to being stuck down a dark hatch in warm water. But she was afraid if she didn't work hard enough, or did something wrong, she'd have to endure the Erinyes' torturous gaze. She'd do almost anything to avoid reliving the memory of her dad dying.

_Heigh ho, heigh ho,_ Hailey thought when they marched into the pit, where the prisoners were busy working, not daring to even glance at Hailey and her friends. She waited to see which task the Erinys would lead her towards-- _polishing, hopefully_ --but she strode towards another tunnel.

The one good thing about the tunnel was that it wasn't the one that led to Hades's palace, so Hailey wouldn't have to walk across the tiny bridge through the abyss again. But the bad thing was she had no idea where it went.

She clutched her necklace and followed. She didn't like not knowing where the Erinys was taking them. What if she was leading them to a torture chamber? The story of Tantalus popped into her head, and she shuddered at the thought of enduring a punishment like his. How horrible it would be to stand thirsty and starving in a pool of water beneath a fruit tree that both receded every time she tried to take a drink of water or pick an apple.

They filed out of the tunnel, and Hailey almost sighed in relief when she wasn't confronted with a hideous torture.

Another cavern lit by flaming torches greeted them. Thick iron doors were carved into the rock walls. Five of them were open, revealing the darkness that lay within.

'Inside,' the Erinys hissed.

Hailey didn't move. She had a feeling this place wasn't just another prison, and that something waited for each of them in the gloom--like a hungry monster.

The Erinys seized Hailey and shoved her into the nearest room, Hailey's knees and elbows stinging as they hit the hard dirt ground.

'Hailey!' Demi cried.

Hailey shot to her feet and spun around in time to have the door slammed in her face, casting her into complete darkness. 'NO!' Hailey dragged her hands down the door, trying to find a handle, but there was nothing but smooth iron. 'Let me out!' she screamed, banging on the door.

A shiver stroked Hailey's spine, and she got the distinct feeling something was watching her. She whipped around, keeping her back firmly planted against the door. 'Hello,' she called into the darkness, her voice trembling. 'Is anyone in here?'

Silence greeted her. Hailey listened intently to it for a minute, trying to discern any sounds that meant she wasn't alone. But the room was deafeningly quiet. It didn't ease her nerves though. No distinct sounds of breathing, or growling, meant there probably wasn't a monster in there with her, but that didn't mean there wasn't something else--like spiders.

The very thought of spiders made Hailey tremble. She hated them, especially the big hairy ones with those extra-long legs.

Hailey stiffened. Something was crawling on her leg... no, she felt _many_ things crawling on her leg--legs. She fought the urge to scream and run around wildly, afraid if she did she would make the things crawling on her angry, and they would bite her.

_Stay calm_. Slowly, Hailey looked down to see what was on her.

_TARANTULAS!_

Something plunked on Hailey's head. She screamed, and her resolve not to run around wildly broke as she hurtled from the door, kicking her legs and swiping at her hair in an attempt to get the spiders off her.

She suddenly froze when she noticed the room had become lighter, as though someone had lit torches. She would have preferred the darkness, because it would've hidden the hundreds of plate-sized tarantulas coating the floor and walls.

One crawled onto her shoe. Hailey screamed and kicked it off, stomping on the spider. It vanished. _What_ _the..._

Another spider launched at her from the wall, clinging to her shoulder. She smacked it and watched it vanish too. It suddenly occurred to her that the spiders might not be real. They had appeared the second she'd started thinking about them.

_Someone must 've designed this room to read peoples' fears and make them come to life as an illusion--a very _real _illusion._

Hailey gripped her necklace and closed her eyes so she couldn't see the spiders. 'They're not real,' she told herself, trying to ignore the scratching and tugging as they crawled their way up her legs. 'They're not real. They're in my imagination. They're no--' her voice faltered as she felt spiders fall onto her from the ceiling and leap at her from the walls. A scream rose in her throat. She clutched her necklace tighter and shouted, 'THEY'RE NOT REAL!'

It stopped. The itching of their legs against her skin, and the heavy weight of their bodies as they tangled in her hair.

Hailey peeked her eyes open, her body sagging. Darkness blanketed the room again. She assumed this was how the room looked when whoever was inside wasn't thinking about anything scary.

She felt pretty smug about having defeated the psychological torture chamber. But she quickly remembered her friends were in rooms exactly like this one. _Have they figured out nothing they 're seeing is real? Or are they screaming their heads off?_

She had to find a way to tell them whatever they were seeing was an illusion, especially Demi, whose biggest fear was being alone. She probably wouldn't even need the room to conjure any fears to be freaking out right now. Being trapped in a dark room by herself would likely be enough to break her.

Hailey was groping her way through the dark when she heard a scream.

'Demi!' She found the door and banged against it. 'It's not real, Demi. It's not real,' she yelled. Demi kept screaming. Hailey banged more ferociously, the skin over her knuckles splitting. 'DEMI! PLEASE! IT'S NOT REAL!' Blood oozed from her fists, and she suddenly realised that Demi's screaming was coming from _inside_ the room. It was playing on another one of her fears.

Another scream ripped through the air. Hailey pressed her aching hands to her ears and hummed loudly. She did this for a minute, praying she was right about the room fabricating Demi's screams and that she hadn't just ignored her friend's pleas for help.

Hailey dropped her hands, breathing a sigh of relief when silence greeted her. She tried not to think of any new fears. She didn't know how much more she could take of them coming to life.

She reassured herself with the thought that Alec had probably used his powers to get out of his room and was likely standing right outside trying to work out how to get the doors open.

Hailey faced her back to the door and sank to the ground. She hated herself for making yet another colossal mistake. She was such an idiot to have thought she could come to the Underworld and put the Erinyes to sleep without any drama. Why didn't she give the wand to Amathia? Why?

The teachers had probably found them missing by now. Hailey didn't know what they'd be thinking had happened to them--maybe that they'd drowned--but definitely not that they were in the Underworld. And even if they did somehow work out where Hailey and her friends had gone, it wasn't like they'd be able to find them. No one knew where the Underworld was.

They were trapped here. No one was coming to save them. Escaping was up to Hailey and her friends, and they needed to do it soon. Not just because they had to warn the world about what was happening, but because she needed her mum to know she was okay. She didn't even want to think about how much she was freaking out--assuming the Academy had been brave enough to tell her they'd lost her daughter again.

Sobbing broke the silence.

A woman was crouching in the corner, crying. 'Mum?!' Hailey jerked to her feet and then hesitated. The room was creating another one of her fears. But fake or not, she didn't care. Having her mum with her brought her a sense of comfort, making her feel as though everything was going to be okay. She sat next to her. 'Mum, it's okay. I'm all right.' She wrapped an arm around her mum's shoulders. 'I'll be home soon.'

Evonee shook her head and sniffed. 'No. You're dead. You died because you broke your promise to me.'

'I'm sorry, Mum. I was trying to fix a mistake I made. But I made things worse.'

Evonee lunged to her feet and glowered down at Hailey with hate-filled eyes. 'I will never forgive you. Your weakness killed Owen.'

Tears burned Hailey's throat, and her heart squeezed. 'I tried to stop it,' she said desperately.

'You killed me, Hailey.'

Hailey stifled a scream. Her dad stood in front of her, his blackened flesh smoking. 'Daddy, I'm sorry. I tried. I really tried.'

'You should never have been born a Zeus. You are a disgrace to the power. You're weak, Hailey. And that's what killed me. I'm dead because of you. IT WAS ALL YOUR FAULT!'

'NO!' Hailey shouted as the feelings she kept locked in the back of her mind broke free and swarmed her.

Guilt pushed against her chest like a knoxen trying to crush the life out of her. She tried to breathe against it, but it was too heavy. She drooped back on the ground, gasping for air.

Evonee and Owen loomed above her, shouting over and over again how she'd killed her dad and wasn't worthy to be a Zeus.

_It 's not real_, Hailey told herself, but she wouldn't believe it. Her parents might not be standing in the room with her right now, but what they were saying was true: her dad was dead because she was a weak Zeus.

Hailey stopped trying to breathe.

She let the heart-crushing pain and lung-squeezing guilt of her dad's death consume her until her parents' angry voices faded into the background.

She felt herself falling down a dark tunnel that seemed it would never end.

**32**

**Worship Us**

'Hailey. Hailey, wake up. It's over.' Someone was shaking her, dragging her back through the darkness. Slowly, she opened her eyes, staring up at Alec's face, which relaxed with relief. 'You're okay.'

_Hardly_ , Hailey thought, climbing back to her feet. Her eyes combed the room for her parents, but they were gone. She calmed a little, especially when she saw the door was open. 'How'd you get it open?'

'With Goldarin. I don't think Hades or the Erinyes expected us to know it, or I doubt they would have put us in here. Come on.'

Demi, Jayden, and Aaron were waiting outside.

Demi sprang on Hailey, hugging her. 'You're all right. I thought I'd never see you again. Any of you. The room made me think I'd be trapped and alone forever--it was my worst nightmare come to life.'

'It's over now. You're not alone,' Jayden reassured her.

'Aaron, are you all right?' Hailey asked. He stared at the open doors, looking as if he expected something, or someone, to run out and accost him. 'Aaron,' she said again when he didn't answer.

He shook his head, as if clearing it. 'I'm fine. So, are we escaping or what?'

'Oh, we're definitely escaping,' Demi said. 'Things have gone too far.'

'We can't yet,' Alec told them reluctantly.

Everyone rounded on him.

He shrank from their hostile gazes. 'It's too risky. The Erinyes are probably in the pit, so there's no way we'd get through it without one of them seeing us, especially when Aaron uses his powers to raise us to the entry tunnel. I think our best chance of getting out of here is to wait until the Erinyes take us back to the hatch and go with our original plan.'

'We can't go back into those rooms,' Hailey's said, her voice catching. She couldn't face her parents again--especially her dad.

Alec dragged a hand through his grimy hair. 'We'll stay out here until we hear someone coming, then we'll have to go back in.'

'And what if they don't come back for us?' Aaron asked. 'What if these rooms were meant to be our new residence?'

'Then I guess we'll escape from here--but not until it gets really late.' Alec looked at Jayden. 'Keep an eye on the time with your watch.'

'Shh,' Aaron hissed an hour later. 'I think I hear something.'

Footsteps echoed down the tunnel.

'Quickly, get back into the rooms,' Aaron whispered.

Everyone jumped up in a panic, and Jayden, Demi, and Aaron vanished into the rooms. Hailey stood outside the door to hers, not being able to step back into the blackness, knowing her grudge-holding parents would be waiting for her--she could practically feel the chill of their hate in the air.

'Come on, Hailey.' Alec steered her back into the dark room. 'Remember, it's not real.'

Hailey lunged forward to stop him from shutting the door, but she was too slow. She tried to control her rapid breathing and closed her eyes, emptying her mind. _White light. Just think of white light. Nothing but white light._

'Murderer!'

Hailey squeezed her eyes shut tighter. _White light, just think of white light_.

The room fell quiet. _It 's working!_

Two hands clamped down on her shoulders, and she sucked in a breath as she looked at her dad's charred face glowering down at her.

'You can't ignore me, Hailey.'

'Yes, I can! You're not real!' She squeezed her eyes shut again, desperately trying to empty her mind.

Owen slammed his fist against the door. 'I WILL NOT BE IGNORED!'

Hailey's eyes flew open, and she darted away from the man posing as her dad. 'Please just go away!'

A wicked smile curved Owen's lips, and he lunged towards her just as the door creaked open and light filtered into the room, forcing the blackness to retreat.

Hailey was so relieved when the charred image of her dad vanished that she could have hugged the Erinys standing in the doorway.

'Come,' the Erinys barked.

Hailey ran to the door, not wanting to spend another millisecond in the room, and found her friends all waiting outside. No one spoke a word, afraid the Erinys would lock them back up or torture them with her gaze. They obediently followed the creature back down the tunnel.

Hailey assumed she was returning them to the hatch, but when they entered the pit the Erinys shoved them into line with the miners, who the other Erinyes were herding into the tunnel leading to Hades's palace.

Hailey coughed, choking on the reek of body odour.

'What's going on?' Demi asked in a quiet voice as they shuffled towards the tunnel with the prisoners.

'I don't know, but I don't like it,' Aaron said, his body tensing into fight mode.

If it was only them, Hailey would have assumed Hades had changed his mind about not killing them. But it looked as though every prisoner in the Underworld was heading to the palace, and Hailey doubted Hades would kill them all. _So why is everyone being brought to him?_

A cold chill of dread settled over Hailey when she realised what was happening. 'I think we're being taken to meet the other gods.'

Demi stumbled a step. 'What?!'

'Demi, shh,' Jayden hissed, gazing around to make sure they hadn't attracted an Erinys's attention.

Alec hugged his arms as the throng of prisoners shoved them down the tunnel. 'What do you mean we're being taken to meet the gods?'

'It's the only explanation I can think of as to why the Erinyes are leading everyone to the palace. Hades must have woken the other gods, and he must want everyone to see how powerful they are or something. We're too late.'

Alec shook his head. 'No, Hailey, I think--'

'Silence,' an Erinys growled from behind them.

No one dared utter another word while they inched down the tunnel. Hailey was trying to focus her mind on what she'd do if all the gods really were waiting for them on the other side.

It wasn't as if she could do much but run away screaming. Her powers didn't work in the Underworld, and as far as she was aware, she hadn't randomly gained the ability to shoot lightning from her hands. _Screw the prophecy!_ she thought as she imagined everyone turning to her to save the world. Of course, they couldn't exactly do that if she was trapped in Tartarus.

Hailey's mind emptied and her heart pumped fresh fear through her body when she entered the cavern, its heat enveloping her while the raining ash's acridness burned her nose and throat. She barely noticed the sweat pouring off her, too terrified by the looming abyss.

She dug her heels into the ground, not wanting to go on the bridge, which was crowded with prisoners. _Can it hold that much weight?_

The people behind Hailey thrust her onto the black crystal. She wanted to scream but couldn't find her voice. And she was afraid someone might push her off to shut her up. _You can do this_ , Hailey told herself, trying to keep her legs from locking as she was shoved across the bridge.

She reached the other side and exhaled in relief, but the pushing didn't stop. She was crammed forward into the hundreds of people crowding the palace's rocky grounds.

It wasn't easy, but Hailey managed to claw her way through the horde with her friends until they had a view of what was happening. Hades and Persephone lingered in front of the palace's doors.

Hades stepped forward, throwing his arms out to the sides. 'Bow before your gods, humans,' he bellowed.

The prisoners dropped to their knees, bowing their heads low. Hailey stared, stunned. Her confusion quickly changed to terror when an Erinys locked eyes with her.

'Everyone down,' Aaron hissed, yanking Hailey and Demi to their knees by their shirts. Alec and Jayden fell to the ground, too, all of them lowering their heads. But Hailey peeked up enough to watch Hades, waiting to see what he'd do next.

He smirked imperiously. 'What offerings do you bring us today?'

Three people near the front rose and pushed three carts brimming with an assortment of sparkling jewels towards Hades, the squeaking of the carts' wheels the only sound in the cavern. 'We have mined these jewels for you, King Hades,' one of the people said in a cowed voice before backing up with the other two prisoners.

Hades waved a bored hand at the carts. 'Put them with the others.' The Erinyes broke from the crowd and vanished in a swirl of red mist with the carts. 'What are you waiting for?' Hades demanded, staring impatiently at everyone bowing before him. WORSHIP US!'

The prisoners bowed their heads lower and chanted, 'Hail King Hades and Queen Persephone, mighty gods of the Underworld.'

_So, this is how Hades is ensuring he doesn 't die from people not worshiping him; he's forcing the prisoners to_. Hailey would have found the whole thing revolting if she weren't so busy being relieved about the Olympians not being back.

**33**

**The Second Escape**

'Yuck, I'm all wet again,' Demi whined, after an Erinys shoved them back down the hatch. 'When can we escape from this cesspool?'

'We just have to--' Alec began.

The hatch door creaked open and someone said, _' Kavvutwkarnakat.'_

There was a flash, and then a shining orb zoomed down towards them.

Hailey leapt out of the way, but the orb paused a foot above her, where it floated like a dim light.

'I thought you may appreciate some light.'

Hailey's stomach twisted in knots when she saw who was peering down at them.

_Persephone!_ She might not have been as cruel to them as Hades had been, but she was still a god, which meant Hailey would be stupid not to be afraid of her.

'Don't be frightened. I wish you no harm. On the contrary, I have come to escort you to more comfortable surroundings.'

'Are you taking us back to the Elysian Fields?' Demi asked eagerly.

Persephone shook her head. 'Hades refused to allow that. But I was able to sway him into allowing you back to the dungeon.' She flicked her hand at them.

Pink, red, yellow, and white wild flowers swirled around Hailey, engulfing her in a beautiful perfume before they vanished, leaving her standing in a dungeon cell with her friends. Persephone materialised outside the bars. 'It wasn't easy convincing him to allow you back here, but I assured him you wouldn't escape again. I beg you not to, as he will kill you.'

'Um, thanks for bringing us here,' Hailey said, not sure what else to say, and confused about why a god was helping them. Hailey had been taught her whole life that gods were all evil and despised humans. 'Why are you being nice to us?'

'I don't like seeing children suffer,' she replied simply.

Aaron curled his fingers around the bars. 'So let us go.'

'I wish I could, but Hades is right in saying you will spoil our plans if you go free, and I don't want anything to stop us from awakening the Olympians. I miss my mother, Demeter, terribly.' Persephone sighed. 'But I promise you, we will release you once they're awake.'

'And when will that be?' Jayden probed.

'Soon. Hades wishes to enjoy not having his brothers to contend with a little longer. I must go now. Sleep well.' Persephone dematerialised in a swirl of wild flowers.

'Well, that was... weird,' Demi said. 'She seems so nice.'

'Don't be fooled. She married Hades, so she's gotta be dark and twisty on the inside,' Aaron said. 'I guess we're back to our original plan.'

Demi patted Alec on the back. 'You're up, muscles.'

'Wait,' Hailey said. ' _Dazatr._ ' She spoke the Goldarin word for open, thinking the barred door would slide across as it had when the Erinys had said the word.

The door didn't budge.

'It only works if you're standing on the outside,' Alec explained.

Hailey shrugged. 'Thought I'd give it a try.'

Alec stepped up to the bars. They let out a wailing groan as he wrenched them apart. One by one, Hailey and her friends squeezed through the gap and steered through the dungeon.

The other cells were now occupied, and Hailey felt horrible walking past the prisoners, especially knowing they were there because of her. But she couldn't free them yet. It was going to be hard enough for her and her friends to get out of the Underworld without being seen, let alone close to a thousand people.

She doubted they'd come with her anyway. Not one of them begged to be freed. They merely stared at Hailey and her friends with empty eyes, as though their minds had vanished long ago. _How many days down here does it take a person to lose all hope?_ Hailey wondered, walking past a woman coated in dried mud who was lying on the ground in her cell, staring at the rock ceiling, unblinking. _Days? Weeks? Months?_ She didn't want to find out.

Hands lunged out of a cell and grabbed Aaron by the arm. 'You're not going anywhere.'

'Get off me!' Aaron tried to pull away, but the man holding him jerked him closer to the bars.

Hailey darted forward and helped Demi, Jayden, and Alec yank Aaron free. She turned back to scowl at the person trying to ruin their escape--a greasy-haired man covered in oozing sores, who smelled like stale urine. 'We're trying to get out of here so we can send people back to rescue the rest of you.'

'You can't escape from the Underworld,' the greasy-haired man replied. 'But maybe if I alert the Erinyes to your escape, they'll reward me by letting me live in the Elysian Fields.' He sucked in a breath. 'ESCAPE! ESCAPE! ESCAPE!' he shouted at the top of his lungs.

Aaron thrust his hands forward, his force field ploughing into the greasy-haired man and smacking him against the rock wall with a thud. His shouts came to an abrupt end as he crumpled to the ground.

'What if someone heard?' Alec gulped, gazing down the tunnel. 'An Erinys could be heading this way right now.'

'Then we better not be here when they come.' Aaron took off at a run.

_Freedom!_ Hailey cheered in her mind when they burst into the empty pit and dashed towards the entrance tunnel, crowding under it. _This nightmare is almost over._

'Do you think you're strong enough to lift us all up at the same time?' Jayden asked Aaron.

Aaron gazed at the entrance tunnel dozens of feet above their heads. 'Only one way to find out.' He extended his palms over the ground.

Tingling exploded in Hailey's fingertips.

'Don't bother.'

Hailey whipped around to confront whoever had discovered them. But there was nobody there. She frowned. 'Did anyone else hear--' Hailey's sentence fell away as her heart slammed against her chest.

_We 're done for_, she thought desolately when Hades materialised, pulling a black helmet from his head and tucking it under his arm.

Alec choked on a breath. 'The cap of invisibility.'

Hades drummed his fingers against it, his nails clinking against the glimmering metal. 'Yes, it has helped me in foiling many escape attempts.' He considered the five of them for a moment. 'I thought my wife naive in thinking you would not attempt another escape, and you have now affirmed that. I--'

Hades's eyes widened for a split second before he stumbled backwards and smacked against the dirt.

Aaron's palms were raised towards him, having used his force field on the god. He redirected his hands at the ground. 'Everyone on. Now!'

Hailey stumbled a step as Aaron raised his palms, the force field beneath her shuddering as it lurched up, rising into the air like a shaking elevator. She spared a glance back at Hades, who wasn't moving. _Yes, we 're going to make this_, she cheered in her head as the force field jerked to a stop at the tunnel.

They bolted, making it all of five steps before an invisible force slammed into them like a minotaur, throwing them off the ledge.

The ground rushed towards Hailey, who bit down on a scream and prayed to the Tyches that whatever had stopped her from splatting onto the dirt the first time would do the same this time.

It did, with Hailey and her friends going immobile just inches from the ground before dropping again and clambering to their feet.

Hades loomed before them, his eyes murderous. 'HOW DARE YOU ATTACK ME!' he roared. 'You will die for your insolence.' A black fireball materialised in his palm.

'No!' Aaron darted in front of everyone, throwing out his arms. 'I'm the one who knocked you over. And it was my idea to escape. Kill me and let them go.'

Demi smacked him on the shoulder. 'Don't be stupid. I'm not going to let you get yourself killed.' She met Hades's gaze. 'We're sorry.'

'You have by far exceeded my patience!' Hades drew his arm back.

_This is it_ , Hailey thought. _This is how I 'm going to die: death by incineration_. There was nowhere to run to, and there was definitely nothing she could say to Hades to change his mind. She closed her eyes, accepting her fate. _I 'm sorry, Mum_.

'Hades, wh--'

'NO!'

Piercing screams forced Hailey's eyes open as intense heat washed over her, making her feel as though she were standing back under the lava sky outside Hades's palace. She stared in surprise and confusion, watching Persephone, who had materialised beside Hades, scream as the black flames from his fireball consumed her. Her screams cut off and she slumped to the ground, the smell of burnt hair lingering in the air as Hades collapsed to his knees beside her charred body.

_What the Tartarus just happened? How did the fireball hit Persephone instead of us?_ Hailey looked at her friends for an answer and saw Aaron's hands were raised. _The fireball must 've ricocheted off his force field and hit Persephone_, she realised.

The wand peeked from Hades's robes. Hailey lunged forward and snatched it, power rushing into her as she took aim at the god. He focused his rheumy eyes on her. 'Wait. I don't want to go back to sleep.' He glanced down at Persephone. 'I wish to die. Persephone was my sole reason for living. I cannot face an eternity without her, especially with the knowledge that I killed her. You must take the humans from here so there will be no one left to worship me.'

_Trap_ , Hailey thought instantly. But as she watched Hades lie down beside Persephone and intertwine his fingers through what was left of her hair, she knew he was being sincere. He wanted to die. It didn't matter if he was being truthful though. He had the power to bring back the Olympians. So letting him live wasn't something she could risk, especially when he'd probably change his mind about dying in a couple of days and hunt Hailey and her friends down for revenge.

A tremor shot through the wand, like it was trying to make her drop it. Her grip tightened. _You don 't control me--not anymore!_ ' _Evatatz_.' The wand's moonstone tip glowed, and Hades collapsed beside Persephone.

Demi frowned at the two unmoving gods. 'I don't get it. How did Hades kill Persephone when gods are meant to be immortal?'

'Don't you ever listen in class?' Alec asked with a tired shake of his head. 'The gods are immortal, more or less, but their powers are capable of killing each other--at least the minor gods' powers are. The Olympians are another story.'

'Oh,' Demi said simply. Her eyes turned to the wand in Hailey's hand. 'Thank the Tyches we have the wand back. Now we can zap ourselves straight to the Academy.'

_Blue skies._

'Watch out!'

Something hard slammed into Hailey from behind, knocking her to the ground. She flipped onto her back and found herself staring into the crimson eyes of an Erinys.

**34**

**Inner Demons**

Searing pain erupted in Hailey's head, and the wand slipped from her hand as she dug her nails into her scalp. 'NO!' she screamed as the memory she'd spent the past five years trying to forget dragged her back in time...

_Hailey was eight. She was standing under an oak tree with her dad in Richmond Park, watching a herd of deer forage a dozen yards away._

_' Happy birthday, baby doll,' Owen said, pulling a blue box from his jeans pocket. _

_Hailey snatched it from his hand, clawing at the white ribbon wrapped around the box, before tearing off the lid and gasping. 'It's beautiful! Thank you, Daddy.' She delicately plucked the gold necklace from the box, tracing a finger over where her name was engraved on the necklace's heart pendant. Hailey wrapped her arms around her dad. 'Thank you. You're the best dad in the whole world. I love you.'_

_Owen squeezed her back. 'I love you too,' he said before helping her put the necklace on. 'But I wish you'd stop growing up so fast.' He ruffled her hair._

_She grinned. 'Sorry, but I don't have Mum's powers.' A cold raindrop slid down her cheek, and the next second the black sky poured down an onslaught of rain, sending the deer galloping for cover._

_' I don't suppose you can do anything about this?' Owen asked, putting a hand above his head to try and shield his face from the rain. _

_Hailey pushed her wet hair from her eyes. 'I can try.' She raised her arms towards the sky and concentrated. Blue skies, she thought over and over again, swiping at the black clouds. A couple of them shifted a few feet. But that was about it. She sighed, her arms dropping to her sides. 'I'm sorry, Dad. I'm not strong enough.'_

_' That's okay. You'll be able to do it eventually. And you did move some clouds.' Thunder rumbled. 'I think we've given your mum enough time to finish the cake anyway--and to clean up whatever disaster she's made of the kitchen.'_

_Hailey giggled, imagining her mum frantically trying to clean up piles of spilt flour from the floor and oozing eggs from the bench. 'Let's go.'_

_They were racing along the tree-lined pathway that led to their street when the lightning started. Great big forks of electricity shot through the sky and thunder roared, making the earth shudder._

_' Come on, Hailey, we better hurry. I don't like how close that sounds.'_

_Hailey stopped running. 'Maybe I should try to clear the sky again, or at least push the storm back.'_

_' No, we really need to g--Watch out, Hailey!'_

_The world flared white._

_A deafening CRACK shook the air as lightning struck a tree, one of its branches exploding in flames and plunging to the ground. Owen shoved Hailey from its path; the flaming branch crashed onto his back, pinning him down._

_' DADDY!' Hailey screamed. She fell to his side as the rain put the flames out. But it was too late; they'd already done their damage._

_Her dad was dead._

The memory crushed the air from Hailey's lungs. If she'd been a stronger Zeus--the type of Zeus the prophecy spoke of--she would have been able to send the storm away, and her dad would be alive. But she wasn't a strong Zeus. She was a weak one. She didn't deserve her powers.

The burning pain intensified, and the memory replayed. Hailey's nails dug deeper into her scalp. _STOP IT!_ she screamed inside her head, guilt wrapping tighter and tighter around her chest, crushing the very air out of her lungs.

A hand touched Hailey's shoulder and cooling relief washed over her as the pain ebbed. She turned to the person beside her, her breath catching as her heart stumbled a beat. Her dad was there, but his pale skin wasn't blackened from fire, and his auburn hair wasn't singed. He looked exactly like he had before he'd died.

'Hi, baby doll.' Owen smiled.

Hailey glanced back at her eight-year-old self, watching as she failed to stop the storm. 'I don't understand,' she said, focusing back on the man next to her. 'Am I dead?'

'No. At least not yet.'

'So how are you here?'

'It doesn't matter.' Owen tucked a piece of Hailey's hair behind her ear. 'We don't have a lot of time. I came here to tell you that what happened to me wasn't your fault. You were only eight. I never expected you to clear away that storm. When I was eight, I could only turn metal into a big lump of goo.'

'But I'm a Zeus. I'm meant to be stronger.'

'You are stronger, Hailey. You used your powers to save your friends from Scylla and a griffin.'

Her throat tightened with tears. 'But I didn't save you.'

Owen glanced over his shoulder, as if he'd heard someone call his name. 'Please, Hailey, there's not much time left,' he said, shifting his attention back on her. 'I need you to forgive yourself. I think you're an incredible Zeus, and I'm so proud of you. You need to understand that what happened to me wasn't your fault. I chose to push you out of the way, and I'd do it again. You need to forgive yourself.' He pulled Hailey into a hug, his copper-like scent blanketing her in a feeling of safety. 'Never forget that.'

'I love you too.' Hailey went to squeeze him back, but he was gone. Her head erupted in flames again, and she was faced with her eight-year-old self sobbing over her dad's unmoving body.

Her heart pendant grew warm against her skin. She could feel her dad's presence in it, and him telling her it was okay to let go. She didn't know if she really had just had a conversation with him, or if her mind had fabricated the whole thing in desperation, but, either way, her life--and her friends' lives--depended on her escaping this memory.

_It wasn 't my fault that I wasn't powerful enough to stop the storm. I forgive myself_, Hailey told herself slowly, and was surprised to find she believed her words; the guilt wrapped around her chest loosened its grip and allowed her to breathe again.

The memory broke apart, shattering into a million tiny pieces that blew away like specks of sand. The agonising pain in her head was all that remained. She had to fight through it; her friends needed her, and they'd come too far and gone through too much to die now.

It took every ounce of strength Hailey had to roll on to her side, but she did it and was rewarded with blissful relief as she broke free of the Erinys's gaze. She grabbed the wand beside her arm and took aim at the dumbfounded Erinys before her. ' _EVATATZ! '_

The Erinys's eyes rolled into the back of her head and she collapsed. Hailey jumped up and whipped the wand towards the other two creatures, who were too busy torturing Jayden and Alec to notice what had happened to their sister. ' _Evatatz!_ '

Jayden went quiet as the Erinys staring at him thudded to the ground. Hailey redirected the wand at the one attacking Alec.

The Erinys sprang, tackling Hailey before she could get one syllable out. She slapped her hand across the creature's face, the Erinys screeching with fury, and aimed the wand directly at her crimson eyes. ' _Evatatz_.' The Erinys stiffened.

_Finally, it 's over_, Hailey thought, pushing the Erinys's limp body off her and lurching up. Her stomach twisted when she saw Aaron covered in claw marks. He was lying unconscious near an overturned cart, diamonds, rubies, and emeralds scattered in the blood pooling around him. Hailey ran towards him.

Demi was kneeling beside Aaron, cradling her arm, which had three gashes extending from her shoulder to her wrist. 'I don't like how much blood he's losing,' she said to Hailey. 'We need to get him back to the Academy so Madam Mendem can heal him.'

'No need.' Hailey pointed the wand at Aaron. ' _Iatnav_.'

His bleeding wounds stitched back together, the claw marks fading, not leaving so much as a scar on his skin. Aaron's eyes flew open and he jerked up, gazing around in confusion. 'What happened?' He looked at the inert Erinyes. 'Are they asleep?'

'Yes. Hailey kicked their arses.' Demi stood up and grimaced, blood dripping from her slashed arm.

Hailey swished the wand at her. ' _Iatnav_.' Demi's gashes vanished as well, and even the bruise on her cheek faded.

Demi stretched out her arm and wriggled her fingers. 'Thanks.'

'Now all we have to do is free the prisoners,' Alec said, staggering over with Jayden. 'And then we can go back to the Academy.'

'So how do we get everyone out of here when we don't even know where half the tunnels lead?' Jayden asked, looking at the twenty tunnels, only two of which they'd been down.

'Leave that part to me.' Hailey pointed the wand out in front of her, not aiming at anything in particular. ' _Nokarl navv iutwnare kar kiat_ Underworld _iatoat_.' The wand's moonstone tip glowed, and a second later the pit was teeming with dazed humans.

'We're really sorry about all of this. I'm going to send you home now,' Hailey told them, knowing that the words couldn't make up for what her and her friends had put them through. The best thing she could do was make sure they never remembered their imprisonment in this place. ' _Oatwatwnato rdakikarl dah kikae zvnasat nara oatkutor kda uiatoat mdaut uatoat knatatr hodaw_.' The wand blazed again, and the prisoners vanished back to where they had been taken from--minus their memories of the Underworld. 'Our turn.' Hailey aimed the wand at her and her friends and ordered it to take them back to Poseidon's Academy.

**35**

**Home Sweet Home**

One second Hailey was standing in the dark gloomy surroundings of Tartarus, and the next she was standing in her bright welcoming dorm, breathing in clean air that cleared her nose of the Underworld's decaying scent.

'Hello, bed.' Demi jumped, landing face first on her mattress. She hugged the pillows to her head and sighed in contentment. 'Oh, how I've missed you.'

'Demi, you're covered in dirt, now all your sheets are dirty,' Jayden rebuked her.

'I don't care.' Demi squeezed her pillows tighter. 'I want to lie here forever.'

'Well, we can't.' Alec swallowed. 'We need tell Amathia what happened.'

'Can't we postpone our expulsion a little longer?' Aaron asked.

Demi jerked up, abandoning her bed and pillows, which were now coated in dirt. 'Oh--yeah, we're going to be expelled, aren't we?'

'I'd say so,' Hailey said. 'Amathia already gave us a second chance. I doubt she'll give us a third one, especially considering we were responsible for almost bringing the gods back from the dead.'

'Can we at least use the wand to take us to her?' Demi asked. 'I'm so tired I don't know if I can walk all the way downstairs.'

'No more spells,' Hailey said firmly. The wand had done enough damage, and she was going to make sure it didn't do any more by giving it to Amathia. _No, we must protect it_ , a voice whispered in her head, urging her to hide it in her chest of drawers.

She took a step towards the drawers. _Stop! The wand is evil. It almost caused the prophecy to come true. It needs to be destroyed!_ She shoved the wand into her pocket before it could coerce her to do anything else.

'We better bring the chest too.' Aaron dropped to his hands and knees and fished the ornate gold chest out from under Hailey's bed before the five of them piled into the hallway.

It was empty, but Hailey didn't expect the rest of the palace to be. She twisted the handle on the door to the common room and braced herself for an onslaught of questions from the other first years about where they'd been for the last who-knew-how-many days, and why they looked--and smelled--like they'd been living in a sewer.

She pushed the door open and frowned. Not one student sat in the common room.

Alec scratched his head, his nails black with grime. 'Where is everyone?'

'I'm guessing in bed.' Jayden glanced at his watch. 'It's 5.30 in the morning.'

'Do you think Amathia will be asleep?' Demi looked hopeful. 'Maybe we should go back to our dorm and wait until later.' She moved to walk back.

Jayden caught her by the arm. 'Nymphs don't sleep, Demi.'

She huffed. 'Fine. Let's proceed with the expulsion.'

Hailey took the lead down the stairs, heading towards Amathia's classroom, since it didn't seem like she ever left it.

She wondered what Amathia's reaction would be when they told her exactly what her sisters had been up to. Hailey assumed she'd ban them from the palace; it was the only way to make sure they never tried anything so diabolical again, and to ensure the protection of the students and teachers.

It was a shame Hailey wouldn't get to enjoy Poseidon's Academy without the nereids, but she deserved to be expelled for what she'd done, even if it was inadvertent. Hailey honestly didn't care though. She was too grateful to be alive and free from the Underworld to sob about how she'd never see the palace again.

Ten minutes later, Hailey was outside Amathia's classroom with her friends. She didn't hesitate as she raised her fist, her knuckles still cracked and covered in dried blood, and knocked. She wanted this whole thing over with so she could go back home, have a shower--a very long shower--go to bed, and pretend as though she hadn't been a prisoner.

'Since when do you knock, Nemer--' The door opened. Amathia's turquoise eyes widened as they fixed on Hailey and her friends. 'You've returned,' she said incredulously. 'Come in. I must hear everything about where you've been.'

Hailey shuffled into the room with her friends, where Amathia sat patiently behind her desk for them to drag chairs forward.

Hailey pulled the wand from her pocket. _No, you must keep it a secret. Protect it!_ She dropped it on Amathia's desk, feeling the wand's hold over her shatter like the memory of her dad dying had in the Underworld, and sank back on her chair. Aaron placed the gold chest beside it.

'I'm relieved you are all all right,' Amathia said, not showing the slightest surprise at the objects now sitting on her desk. 'I believe I know where you have been, judging by the wand, but I would like to hear it from you.'

Demi blurted out the entire story: how they'd found the wand, how they'd read a spell, and how they'd ended up in the Underworld.

Hailey expected Amathia to show some shock when Demi told her about Hades and Persephone being back, but she simply nodded, as though she'd already worked that part out.

'You have, once again, been on an adventure worthy of Homer,' Amathia said when Demi finished her story. 'It was wise to erase the captives' memories so they will never remember their ordeal. And I also believe the world would rather remain ignorant of how near they came to the prophecy being fulfilled.' Amathia's eyes were regretful as she surveyed them. 'I'm sorry for what you have been through. It is much more than any one person should have to endure, let alone children--I mean teenagers.'

'It was all your sisters' plan,' Aaron said, anger radiating from him. 'We heard them talking about Poseidon coming back, and we didn't know what they meant by it until we were in the Underworld and saw Hades. Then we realised they'd known about the wand and us reading the spell the whole time.'

Amathia trailed a finger over the blue glass teardrop hanging from her neck. 'Yes, I know all about what my sisters have been up to, and I assure you I have had words with them.'

'Words!' Demi cried in outrage. 'They tried to wake up the gods--and kill us! They deserve to be kicked into the sea!'

'I understand your frustration with them,' Amathia replied in an even tone. 'But Poseidon's palace is as much their home as it is mine. I cannot force them out.'

_What?!_ Hailey leaned her hands on the desk, careful not to touch the wand. 'Amathia, I don't want to be rude, but your sisters will try something like this again if you let them stay.'

'I promise you, they won't. If they had the means to awaken the gods in another way, they would have done so by now.'

'Maybe that's true, but what about their plan to kill off all the students and teachers in the palace?' Aaron asked.

Amathia was only stunned for a second. 'I don't know how you learned of Nemertes's threats, but I promise you they are empty. Nemertes is not--what's that expression you humans sometimes use?--Ah, I remember... Nemertes is not one to get her hands dirty, nor are my other sisters. She has blustered about purging this palace of students and teachers since I first opened the Academy, but she has never taken action. All the same, I do keep a close eye on my sisters to ensure they don't harm anyone. I will admit, I did let this duty of mine lax slightly this year, and, as a consequence, you five were harmed. But I will not let them out of my sight again.' Amathia picked up the wand. 'I will have to destroy it so nothing like this can occur again.'

Hailey's fingers itched for her to snatch the wand back. She fisted her hands and pinned them to her sides. 'Are we expelled now?'

'Of course not. None of this was your fault.'

_Um, what?_ Amathia was letting them off the hook again?

'Wasn't everything our fault?' Alec countered. 'I read the spell that woke up two gods and the Erinyes, and we kept the wand a secret from you.'

Amathia placed the wand back on her desk, splaying her fingers over the top of it, as if holding it down. 'Wands are immensely powerful--especially Hecate's--they are infused with so much magic that it grants them life. A life they protect by casting a spell over everyone who touches them to never reveal their existence to anyone who would seek to destroy them.' Amathia tapped her fingers on the wand. 'As I'm a spirit, I'm immune to the wand's power, but the five of you were not. The wand used its magic to coerce you to do its bidding.'

Hailey didn't know what to be more shocked about: that Amathia wasn't expelling them or that the wand had basically possessed them.

'There is one thing I would ask you to do,' Amathia said. 'I believe it wise not to tell anyone where you have been, as it will only serve to create a mass panic.'

Hailey could see it now. If she told the other students about her time in the Underworld, they would tell their parents, who would then tell their friends, and pretty soon the entire world would know some of the gods still lived. People would be terrified of the prophecy coming true, and that would mean everyone would look to Hailey to do something. No way did she want that.

'What do we tell them instead?' Hailey asked.

'That you snuck into a forbidden part of the palace and wandered into a room that traps all who enter it.'

Alec leaned forward, curiosity gleaming in his eyes. 'Is there really a room like that here?'

'What about Alec's powers?' Aaron asked before Amathia could answer. 'He could've walked through the door and gotten help.'

'Not if he were wearing a neutralising bracelet,' Amathia contradicted.

Demi crossed her arms. 'That's kind of boring. Could we tell people we got trapped in a room with a monster and had to kill it instead?'

'Your version is fine,' Jayden cut in, shooting Demi a chiding look.

'Yeah, we'll tell everyone what you said,' Hailey agreed.

'Thank you.' Amathia bowed her head.

**Epilogue**

THE MISSING 718 REMAIN CLUELESS

One month has passed since the missing 718 returned home with no memory as to who kidnapped them or where they were being kept. Hecates have been working extensively with the missing 718 to restore their memories, but, as yet, no potion they have brewed has worked. While police are assuring everyone that they are continuing their investigation into the kidnappings, it doesn't look promising that the world will ever learn the mystery of who kidnapped the missing 718 and why.

_Good_ , Hailey thought, tossing the newspaper onto her clamshell nightstand. If the Hecates hadn't worked out how to restore the prisoners' memories by now, then they probably never would, which meant no one, besides her, her friends, and a few teachers, would ever know the truth about the Underworld and the gods.

'This is impossible.' Demi was wrestling with the zipper on her suitcase.

'You'd probably be able to shut it if you folded everything up instead of shoving it all in,' Hailey remarked, stacking a pile of clothes into her own suitcase, which was open on her bed.

'Too late for that now.' Demi plunked down on her suitcase lid and zipped it closed. 'Yes,' she cheered.

Hailey laughed and closed her suitcase. 'I can't believe it's been a year. Or that we actually survived it.'

'Yeah, those exams were pret-ty hard.'

'I meant about us almost getting expelled _twice_ , and nearly being killed by Scylla, a knoxen, a griffin, Fifth, Hades, and the Erinyes.'

'Hades and the Erinyes? I have no idea what you're talking about. I was too busy being trapped in a room.' Demi smirked.

Hailey tossed a pillow at her. 'Come on, let's go.'

They wheeled their suitcases down to the common room, which was already packed with soon-to-be second years.

'Out of my way.'

Someone bashed into Hailey, who had to press a hand to her suitcase to keep from falling. She glared at Venus sauntering away with the twins.

'Bet you wish you could punch her again,' Demi muttered.

Hailey clenched her hand into a fist. 'You have no idea.' Considering what had happened to them in the Underworld, Amathia had allowed Hailey breaking Venus's nose to slide. She doubted she'd get away with doing it a second time.

'Ready to go home?' Jayden asked, pushing towards them with Alec and Aaron.

'Definitely,' Hailey replied. All she wanted to do was go home, hug her mum, and never have to think about what had happened to her in the Underworld again.

'Excuse me,' Madam Grayson said, making her way past them with the chest of travelling necklaces. She stopped in the middle of the room, the students forming a circle around her. 'I think we've had a pretty good year, and I have every hope next year will be even better,' she said with a smile. 'I'd like to remind you your report cards will be mailed in the next couple of weeks and are for your _parents_ to open, _not_ you.' Madam Grayson paused to make sure this last bit sank in. 'I hope you all have a wonderful holiday, and I look forward to seeing you next year.' She placed the chest on the ground and took a couple of cautious steps back.

'Demi, we can wait,' Jayden called as Demi leapt into the horde of students diving for the chest, everyone seeming eager to escape the school--or more like escape schoolwork.

Hailey wanted to follow her, but a fear of being trampled kept her from joining the throng. 'I think she's pretty desperate to get home after everything we've been through.'

'Who can blame her?' Alec said. 'I hope next year isn't as eventful.'

Aaron crossed his arms. 'Yeah, we'll see about that.'

'Got them,' Demi announced, squeezing her way back through the crowd of dematerialising students and handing them each a necklace.

'Thanks.' Hailey slipped the necklace over her head. 'See you in a couple of days.' She shut her eyes and thought of home.

'Hailey!' Evonee leapt from Hailey's bed and yanked her into an excruciatingly tight hug.

'I missed you too, Mum, but you're kind of crushing me.'

Evonee released her. 'Sorry. I've been wanting to do that since the school told me you were missing again. I can't believe you got locked in a room for two nights. How does that even happen?'

Hailey hated lying to her mum, which is why she decided to tell her the truth. 'Actually, we weren't locked in a room. We were in the Underworld--prisoners of Hades in fact. We met the Erinyes and Persephone as well. But Hades accidentally killed Persephone. We put Hades and the Erinyes back to sleep, so you don't have to worry about them doing any more damage,' Hailey said all of this very casually.

Evonee chuckled. 'You have such a big imagination. If you're too embarrassed to tell me how you got yourself locked up that's fine.'

It was the exact reaction Hailey had assumed her mum would have. The truth was pretty unbelievable. But it had been the truth, and if it ever came up again and her mum realised Hailey really had been in the Underworld for two days, Hailey could say that she'd told her all about it and she hadn't believed her.

'Why don't you settle in a bit and then come downstairs. I'll make pizza for lunch.' Evonee kissed Hailey on the head before ruffling her hair, the gesture reminding her of her dad.

She opened her mouth to call her mum back as she left the room, but stopped herself. While she was tempted to tell her about seeing her dad, Hailey didn't know if it had even been real. Her mind had been about to implode on itself from pain and guilt, so the more reasonable explanation for her dad suddenly coming back from the dead was a hallucination to help her survive all that.

_But what if it really was him?_ It had felt so real, and she could still smell his coppery scent as he'd hugged her goodbye. Real or not, her dad had saved her life and made her see that she wasn't the giant failure she'd been spending the last five years thinking she was.

'Thanks, Dad,' she said, clutching her heart pendant and sagging back onto her bed.

She was finally home--and in one piece. She was still in disbelief over her first year at Poseidon's Academy. When she'd jumped into that whirlpool, she'd never thought her year would consist of battling monsters, two gods, and the Erinyes. She wanted to believe that her second year wouldn't be nearly as action packed, but with the nereids hanging around the palace, it was doubtful.

But that was next year's problem.
**Want to know how Hecate 's wand ended up in the griffin's nest and what happened in the Underworld when Alec read the awakening spell? **

Sign up to the Poseidon's Academy Reading Group to get a free 2000-word story that shows exactly what unfolded. As a bonus, you'll also discover what Demi, Jayden, Alec, and Aaron saw when they entered the fear rooms.

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_And if you can find the time to leave a review for Poseidon 's Academy on your favourite book website that would mean so much to me, as I'd love to hear what you thought of Hailey's adventure._
**Join Hailey for her second year at Poseidon 's ** **Academy in...**

Hailey returns to Poseidon's Academy hoping for a less eventful year to last, but with the nereids still intent on resurrecting the gods, things are set to become even more challenging.

sarahavogler.com
**About the Author**

Unlike Hailey, Sarah attended an ordinary high school, and a villain-free university--The University of Queensland--where she completed a bachelor's degree in writing and ancient history, and a master's degree in writing, editing, and publishing.

Prior to that, Sarah spent her younger years watching _Xena: The Warrior Princess_ and _Hercules: The Legendary Journeys_ , which sparked her interest in Greek mythology and saw her spend entire days sitting by her bedroom window, waiting for a pegasus to swoop out of the sky and take her on an adventure worthy of Homer. When it was clear a pegasus wasn't going to rescue her from her dull life, Sarah turned to writing her own adventures.
