Secret Of The Moon's Daughter: Daughter of Artemis Sequel

5-Shades and Sweethearts

Chapter 5:

~Shades and Sweethearts~

"How long will it take to fix Festus?" Percy asks. "A couple of days. We don't have that long. We need to find them now." Leo replies. They all look at me. I smooth my hair and lick my lips. I can't look that bad right? No food on my face? "What?" I ask self-consciously. "Maybe we should sleep on it." Jason says slyly. He's definitely up to something. But I'm so tired I'm ok with sleeping. "I've never slept outside before." Ellee says. "Where are we going to sleep?" Aly asks. "There's a hotel a few blocks up. We'll sleep there and Lyra will sleep with hopefully sweet dreams." Jason says wryly. "Dreams? What do you know about my dreams?" I ask harshly. "Ah hah! So you have been having weird dreams. You have to tell us every detail." Jason says victoriously. "I never said that!" I argue defensively. "Just tell us what you know." Leo commands as we walk into the hotel. "Well all I remember is 2 girls, me with dark hair in a long prairie that seemed to go on forever. Then I remember snakes slithering through the grass and me with a majestic silver bow and arrows shooting at the snakes. That's all I remember, okay?" I explain. They look at me skeptically and excited. As I told the story I could see their eyes light up with excitement of new information. "What exactly did the snakes look like?" Percy asks. "Ummm... Really big, with a little crown marking." I reply. "A basilisk." Percy murmurs. "Go to sleep. Maybe we'll get new information when you wake." Jason says. "What am I, a calculator?" I say, annoyed at their intentions of my usefulness. I sigh. "Whatever." I give in. As we head into our room the boys move into a room across the hall. "Remember, tell us everything as soon as you wake up." Percy says. I shut the door and groan, knowing that I'm going to have another nightmare. I wish I could have the satisfaction of waking up and telling the boys, 'Nope. No dreams. Maybe you'll have to read the newspaper like everyone else.' But I know that's not the case. I want to procrastinate and push off the dream as far as possible so I ask, "Ellee? Have you ever thought about your parents?" I can't believe I just asked her that. Of course she thinks about her parents, every second of everyday. She sends me a look confirming as such. I shrug and ask another, "As Gods?" She sinks onto the bed and sighs. "I don't know what those boys are smoking but they're no such thing as Greek Gods. My parents both died in a car crash when I was a baby. You know that Lyra." She says sadly. "But what if they're not joking?" Aly asks. "I mean I was told my dad died in a plane crash but there is no record of my dad being on that plane. Let alone any plane. I've researched and studied but nothing has ever made sense until now." She finishes. I sigh knowing sleep is the only answer. Depriving myself of oblivion isn't helping anything only postponing what needs to be done. "Wish me luck." I yawn. "Good luck." They bless.

The dream comes as soon as my eyes close. I see that we're still in grassy lands and there's a barbed wire fence with no trespassing signs as far as I can see. My vision zooms in on a sign that reads, Amberline Fields. Then the girls, including 2 more, climb over the fence. 'So much for No Trespassing.' I think. The scene changes and there's a sports car in the middle of the field. Now it's a minivan. A man comes out that looks somehow familiar but has blonde hair, tan skin, and blue eyes hiding under black shades. "Hi Sweethearts." I hear before the scene changes. Now I see all of the girls in the van soaring over the-sky! A girl with grey eyes is driving and I feel sick just dreaming about the car. It feels so real. I hate heights. My only fear. Suddenly the van lurches forward and I scream. The last image I see is the young man with an evil looking face, laughing as he says, "Goodbye Sweetheart."

I scream and sit bolt upright in bed. I tumble over and land with a hard boom on the hard hotel floor. I feel around trying to gain my surroundings and hit my head on a table as I switch on the light. I look in the mirror and see that I'm pale and sweating. These dreams are getting worse every night. I can't seek sanctuary because that only means hiding from myself. Next thing I know I'm knocking on the boys' door. I check my phone, 1:27 AM. Leo emerges sleepily from behind the door and invites me in when he sees what state I'm in. "I take it it was bad." He states. "Worse." I reply. He quickly wakes up Jason and Percy and they listen intently as I tell them the dream in gory detail. By the time I'm done Percy looks dreadful, Jason like he's about to flip a table, and Leo just looks broken. "What do you think?" I ask after moments of eery tension-filled silence. "I think your mind is being tampered with." Percy states. "Excuse me?" I ask. "You heard me." He replies. "Ok well I think my mind is my own, Mr. Smartypants!" I argue. He only sighs. "Anna- Lyra, when are you going to learn, we're on your side." He says catching himself. "Who's Annabeth?" I ask frankly. He whips his head around to glare at me, then gives in. "She's my girlfriend. And is very special to me." He answers. I smile. That's so sweet. "What about Aurora and Piper?" I ask them. "Aurora." Leo claims, raising his hand. "Piper." Jason does the same. "What about the other two?" I ask. "Those are my half-sisters, Kali and Bea." Percy says. I nod. "What about the guy in shades?" I ask. "He didn't happen to say a poem did he?" Percy asks. "Ummm...No. But he looked familiar like someone I'd met before. Blonde hair, tan skin, blue eyes. He looked a little like... Aliyah! he looked exactly like Aliyah." I realize. They nod. "Well the description is definitely Apollo. God of the sun, healing, poetry, music, and prophecy. He has taken a certain liking to Haiku." Jason explains. I laugh. Them talking about the gods in present tense just makes everything that's happening seem more real. There's no way right? but still I think of my parents. My mom. Nobody knew her, the officials have never heard of her, I don't even know my own mother's name. All I know is I appeared on the doorstep of Lady Corren's in a silver basket with nothing but my necklace and a note with beautifully sprawled letters reading, Lyra Kelli. "But." Jason continues, pulling me away from my thoughts. "That doesn't sound like Apollo at all. I don't know who's messing with you but they need to stop. You are the only tool we have of finding the girls and saving Artemis before its too late. I only pray to the gods it isn't already."

As I walk back to my room Jason's words sink wisdom into my mind. 'They need me. They need me to help them save a Goddess before its too late. I can't do this!' For the first time in a long time, I pray. To my mom. For I don't know who or what she is but I know for sure, she's my mother and I love her. It feels like the right thing to do. "Help me, mother. Show me the way." I whisper.