The Next Generation: Hades's Helm

Chapter 15: Ally

No.

Ally looks around for a few moments, studying the landscape.

After a few moments, Ally looks over at Thunder, raising her eyebrows and smiling a bit. "So, this is where you grew up? Does your mother live here, or is she in the US?"

Thunder glances at Ally, before just shaking her head, looking around the island and shouldering her bag. "She lives here."

"We should see her. How long have you been at camp? 6 years?" Ally asks, smirking a bit and picking up her bag as well.

Thunder hesitates for a few moments, before shrugging slightly. "Maybe. I don't know. I don't want to drag her into this."

Ally raises her eyebrow, thinking for a moment. Eventually, she just nods. "Alright. So, what do we do first? Just walk around and hope trouble will find us?"

Thunder glances at Hayley, making sure the youngest girl is keeping up, before nodding. "I don't have a better idea. Hayley?"

Hayley surveys the land for a few more moments, before nodding slowly. "I do, actually. I think Ally's right. We need to go to your house, Thunder."

Thunder was silent for a moment, her eyes widening. "What? I just said I didn't want to drag my mother into this!"

"I know. But the prophecy said your roots. What's more rooted to you than your home?" Hayley says, as if it was the most obvious thing.

It was the most obvious thing. Ally can't believe she didn't think of it. Hayley had just gotten to camp, yet she seems to have this whole questing thing down better than Ally, who's been preparing to go on quests since the day she could think on her own.

But, Ally pushed her jealousy aside, nodding. "She's right, Thunder. Come on, for the good of the quest."

Thunder thinks for a moment, before sighing and shaking her head. "My mother doesn't know English. I'll have to speak in Korean when I speak to her, then translate for you both."

"Fine by me. You're teaching me Korean anyway, so I'll be able to understand some of it." Ally says, smiling proudly.

Thunder hesitates again. Ally can practically see the gears turning in the other girl's head as she grasps for some excuse not to take the younger girls to her mother's house. "My mother hates strangers in her home."

"We aren't strangers. We're your friends. Your mother doesn't let your friends in your house?" Ally asks, raising an eyebrow. A silent challenge.

Thunder sighs, her excuse shot down once again. "I haven't seen her in six years since my father took me to America. She might not even want to see me."

Ally crosses her arms over her chest, not willing to back down on this. "It's worth a shot. The fate of the world might depend on this quest, yet you're being stubborn over not wanting to see your mother."

Thunder opens her mouth to protest again, but after a moment, she shuts it. Then, she mutters quietly. "Fine..."

And so, off went the three girls towards Thunder's mother's house.

The three girls walk along the clean streets, Hayley lagging slightly behind, as always. They walk in silence, all lost in the buzz of their own thoughts.

After maybe 10 minutes of walking, Thunder halted to a stop, forcing Ally to stop as well. Hayley didn't notice the two other girls stopping, accidentally walking into Ally. Ally stumbles a bit, but they both steady when Ally grabs Hayley's arm.

When they get steady on their feet, they both look to see why Thunder stopped. Standing in front of them is a red headed woman, her hazel eyes wide and panicked. She was white, with a round, radiant face. She glances around the three girls for a moment, before stepping forward and grabbing Thunder's shoulders, shaking her violently.

"Don't go!" The crazed woman shouts. "You can't go! Turn around and go home, child! Go home, while you still can! You'll die, child!"

Thunder finally manages to get the woman off of her, grunting quietly. She then starts running, only stopping a couple blocks away. Ally and Hayley keep up, Hayley panting slightly while Ally is fine.

"Are you okay? What was that?" Hayley asks, glancing behind her, pulling down her mask to breathe better.

"Just a crazy lady. Don't know." Thunder says, shaking her head, glancing back as well.

"She looked familiar..." Ally murmurs quietly, although neither Thunder or Hayley hear her.

"It doesn't matter. It'll be fine. Come on, let's keep going." Thunder says, shaking her head and turning to keep walking.

Ally and Hayley glance at each other for a moment, before following behind Thunder. Ally jogs to catch up, but Hayley stays lagging behind once again.

The girls walk in silence once again, and although the other two girls seem to have dropped it, Ally's mind can't drop the woman. She looked so familiar, like she'd seen her face before...

But she can't grasp it. It's like the woman's identity is on the brink of Ally's thoughts, just out of reach.

Ally continues to try to figure it out as she walks through the streets of the island, turning the woman's face over and over again in her thoughts.

But she's pulled out of her thoughts when Thunder stops again. This time, Hayley doesn't run into her. In front of the three girls is not another crazed woman. It's a house.

"We're here," Thunder says, her voice barely a whisper.