The Temple Unleashed (Book 1) | Updated Weekly

Chapter 1~Metis, Math, and Mockingbirds

"The Greeks believed that there were other gods and goddesses who existed. Zeus, Hera and Apollo are only a few. There was the god of war; Ares, the goddess of the moon; Artemis, the god of—"

Katherine Cadell sat in her least favourite class of all time; history, with her head propped up on her hand like many of her classmates who had the same zombie-like stupor plastered across their faces. Kat groaned to herself.

Why do we even have to learn this stuff? It's not like any of it is actually true.

She glanced up at the torture device hanging above the only means of exit from the boring classroom. The hands on the clock seemed to move even slower, prolonging the monotonous class.

Eighth grade was almost over, only three more days. Kat wondered what she would do during the summer. She had started taking archery lessons in the previous year and she had gotten much more accurate over the school year. Her mom had promised her horseback riding lessons during the summer break as well.

"Katherine—" suddenly Mr. Darmon's voice brought Kat out from her reverie with a sudden jolt. His voice startled Kat, who had slouched way over her desk.

"Tell me who Athena's mother is," he said sharply. Katherine stared at her teacher, her eyes glancing at her classmates for some help but they gave her bored expressions.

"Erm.....uh....well, the dad is probably Zeus, right?" Kat knew that much, most of the deities were either Zeus' siblings or their child. Encouraged by her teacher's nod of approval, she gained confidence and said,

"The mom is Aphrodite," she said with such boldness that some of her classmates looked up, startled at the volume of her voice. She smiled to herself, but, judging by the incredulous look on her teacher's face, Kat had made the correct assumption that she was wrong.

"Well ... .seeing as how you all are so smart, I believe it is time for a pop quiz," Mr. Darmon said, his voice dripping with derision. The students all groaned as the teacher pulled out a rather large stack of papers. They glared at Kat as a packet of papers were placed on their desks.

Kat scowled at the paper before reluctantly picking up her pencil.

The bell rang just as Kat filled out the last question and dropped it on the teacher's desk.

"Don't forget to get your permission slips in before Friday," he said to class as they filed out of the room. The 8th grade class would get to take a half a week trip to Greece at the end of the school year. Mr. Darmon said it was because the students were so diligent when they learned about the ancient Greeks that they deserved to go to Greece to see some of the sights they learned about. Kat was convinced that it was just a lame excuse to stuff more knowledge in the student's brain even after school was done.

The bell was ringing by the time she stepped out of the classroom. She met her best friend in the halfway before walking to her last class of the day, which just so happened to be her favourite class.

"Hey, Beks!" Kat greeted. A tall girl with blonde hair walked up to her. Her hair was pulled into a messy bun and her glasses framed her large grey eyes. Rebecca, or Beks, was holding a book in her hand and her backpack was visibly stuffed with more books. She was the brainiac when it came to anything literature and science. In more of a layman's term, she was the nerd with Kat following close behind.

"Hi Kat, I just got a new book, and it is so riveting! It's called To Kill a Mockingbird."

"I thought we didn't have to read that book until 10th grade?" but Beks was already engrossed with the book.

The two made their way to the math classroom, taught by Ms. Beckon. They found seats as the rest of the students entered the classroom.

"Good afternoon, class," the teacher said cheerily. "How many of you are going on the field trip with Mr. Darmon?" A show of hands appeared, including Beks and Kat. It had taken a lot of convincing from Beks for Kat to go but since her mom had a business trip during the time, she had finally given in.

"Results for the math finals came in, and I must say, I am quite proud of you all," Ms. Beckon smiled at her class but her proud smile lingered on Kat a little longer.

"You all have worked so hard in this class, though I must say Kat, you got the highest score out of everyone here," her words turned Kat's face into a colour of a rose but nevertheless, Kat was glad that her teacher recognized her hard work.

Math class ended all too soon for Kat's liking. But as she and Beks walked to their bus, she said,

"I must say, I'm glad school is over. I can't wait for the field trip to be over, too. I have so many plans for the summer."

The bus dropped Kat off at her house. It was large with black trim and white walls. A black Cadillac was parked in the driveway, letting Kat know her mom was home. After saying goodbye to her friend, she raced up the walkway to her house.

Inside, she dropped her backpack on a hook and made her way to the kitchen to grab a snack.

"No greeting or anything?" a tall lady with brown hair pulled into an elegant french bun smiled at the doorway.

"Sorry Mom, thought you might be busy so I didn't want to bothe—wait...why are you all dressed up and what is your suitcase doing down here?" Kat's eyes lingered on the business-like appearance of her mom and the black hard-shelled suitcase stood next to her.

"I'm sorry Kitkat," her mom said, using Kat's affectionate nickname. "But my boss said I had to be there a couple days early. I came down to say goodbye."

"But Mooooooom," Kat griped, "You said you'd be here to say goodbye when I leave on my trip and to greet me when I come back!"

"I know, I know, it's just—"

"Just business, I know," Kat sighed.

"I'm sorry dear, but I promise I'll be home to greet you when you come back from your trip. Your permission slip is on your desk. Rose will be in everyday to clean and cook. And Beks and her family live around the corner if you need anything. Now I must go or I will miss my flight. Love you bunches, Kitkat." And with one final hug, her mom stepped out of the house and into the waiting taxi. Kat waved goodbye until her mom was out of sight.

"It's not like she's a bad mom... she's just always away," thought Kat wryly to herself before closing the door.