Into The Deep: X Marks the Spot, Part I
“Aye.” Duncan nods his head and then takes his shirt off. I think he has misunderstood me, but then he turns around, and I see that a map is tattooed onto his back.
“Aye.” Duncan nods his head and then takes his shirt off. I think he has misunderstood me, but then he turns around, and I see that a map is tattooed onto his back.
I paused upon my approach and watched as Artemis leaned against the railing, looking down at the water below. The sun streaked through her windblown hair as her face lit up.
I landed hard on my knees, my snakes hissing and striking at the air in a frenzy as I went down. I screamed in frustration, stood, and pushed my way through the remaining passengers.
The pack grunted and clicked their tongues as they circled Medusa and me. At first glance, they seemed like a wolf pack, but on closer inspection, their form was significantly larger than the wolves seen in the wild.
The teeth snapped again, and I raised my foot, giving him a swift kick just below his jaw, connecting with a dull thud against his thick hide. He reeled back on his haunches, grabbing my foot between his front paws.
“So tag and bag, or should we just kill them? Because honestly, I am good either way.”
Nestled between a ribcage and a skull is a wooden box about two hands long. Unremarkable yet mystifying. It looks familiar, but I can’t think why. Why is this box so important?
No! I cannot put you all in danger. Look at what they have done to poor Persephone. This is my Quest. Selene and I will find a way to get the information from the villagers.
I stepped away from the group and gathered a few large leaves along with a coconut shell filled with moon water. When I returned, Morpheus moved to allow me access to Persephone. I washed the dried blood from her arms and legs, sending her positive energy and stroking her skin with the damp leaves.
To see the map that’ll lead you to the mountain hosting the Ever-Living Fire, you will need to drink the potion multiple times. There’s no telling if the person doing it will survive.
“Oh, but I am. I am you. The real you. What would your precious family say if they saw the real you? Do you think they would still love you? Would they love the Athena we both know you really are? Take a good look! This is who you really are. Who WE are.”
I looked into the pool at the reflected moon and caught my face looking back at me. Darkened over and cold, I realized what must change…me. I closed my eyes and exhaled, a cold breath of air rushed out in a cloud. I have a home, a family. They are here with me.
You’re supposed to be the steady one, the one who dreams. But in those dreams, you’re focusing your attention on improving the world, and the heavens above. Heavenly spirit. Anime mundi…the world soul.
Why shouldn’t I have it? I’ve been through so much, didn’t I deserve a little good luck and fortune for a change?
But it was what he was holding that caught my attention the most. It was a black pug wearing a small black leather tricorn with a brown feather on one side.