The Child of Hecate: The Arising Oracle

Chapter Eight: Dreams, Lollipop Trees, and Also With a Side of Decapitation!

HELEN

My churning dreams were annoying. Very annoying. Also weird.

I ran into walls many times. It was like the dream wanted to kill me.

It was a maze made of rough cream-coloured limestone brick walls, with swirling stark-white pillars supporting dark brown wooden beams which hide the sky. Yet the room was so big I couldn't see the end of it, and a second later I couldn't see a metre in front of me because a moving grassy hedge blocked my way. This was a room with moving, alive mazes. That wanted to kill me.

Suddenly, a large, fat dragon that looked like an overgrown, overweight walrus rolled over to me-but literally rolled to me. The red, rocky-hided monster rolled at maximum speed (read: probably no faster than me while jogging). 

I dashed off fearfully-right into a circular opening where the floor was completely smooth, glinting grey rock with arcane rune magic carved into it in spiraling mandalas, the crevices glowing bright ethereal blue. 

In the middle of the circle, there was a long wooden stake about as tall as me. Then, of course, just because I have such bad luck, invisible cords shot out from the stake, and bonded me to it. I screamed in pain, the fiery cords eating into my skin, painfully torturing me at every breath. My lungs rattled like an old man's, and as the dragon waddled into the room, I knew this was it. I was going to be lunch.

Until seven figures wrapped in pure, cold shadow for clothes walked into the room as well. 

I couldn't identify anything but the gender of each person. Except they weren't people. I knew these were the seven minor gods who had stolen the meander key. Two of them were female, and five of them were male.

Female No.1 had blond wavy hair, curls peeking out of her shadowy shawl. I couldn't see anything except that, though I had a feeling she was smiling coldly, and I was right when she lifted her hooded cloak and shawl. She had skin as white as milk, and beautiful but dangerous icy blue eyes staring at me.

Female No.2 lifted her hood and shawl as well. I could see stunning eyes but I didn't know what colour they were, and it was the same with her hair-curly or straight, brown, black or blonde I didn't know, but she was the most gorgeous woman I'd ever seen. I would've felt jealous if I'd had any sense, but, I'm sorry, I'm just not interested in stuff like that. I only bother with showers because they keep me healthy and clean, so if they didn't I wouldn't have bothered with them. (Just saying, some of Helen's character is based on me, so yeah, I wouldn't take showers if they didn't keep me clean. But I still have to. Call me crazy, yuck, whatever.)

Male No.1 lifted his hood too. I think this routine was too dramatic. He had sleepy grey hair that looked like mist and no pupils or irises-just white, like his eyes were rolled up in his head. And they were glowing sleepily. He had dark skin the colour of chocolate.

Male No.2 had skin as black as volcanic ash and empty eye sockets filled with red fire. He wore a black shirt, ratty jeans, a leather jacket, and a bandana on his head. He had a knife tucked in his belt. Suddenly my nerves were frayed as far as they can spread. They were completely gone, and all the pain I was experiencing from the bonds left my mind and were filled with hopelessness and terror instead. I felt every negative emotion to do with fear.

Male No.3 radiated panic, urgency, the need of wanting to escape and run around the room. He was muscular teenager with a brutal face covered with scars. He was dressed in jeans, a black shirt, and a leather jacket, just like Male No.2.

Male No.4 had glowing skin and a handsome face, with shining golden eyes and shaggy brown hair, and the final god, Male No.5 had pale eyes and diamonds adorned in his black hair.