The Pure

The Tenebrous Twins

5:30 AM. My alarm goes off for me to get up. Grudgingly, I get out of bed and stretch. I go into Cy and Tia's room to make sure they are awake too. They are. We get dressed and go downstairs to eat a quick breakfast. It's 5:45 AM now.

"Hey sis, I'm craving some spam musubis and Funions, so is it ok if we stop at 7/11, and pick some up before we go to the beach?" Cy asks.

"Sure." I respond. "Let's leave now then."

Five minutes later, we arrive at 7/11. I make Cy wait in the car, just in case someone tries to break in. Tia and I each grab our musubis, chips, and drinks, and head to the counter.

"Will thisssssssss be all?" the store clerk says.

I glance up. She seems normal apart from her awful and obvious weave. I hand her a $20 bill, and she latches onto my hand. Her nails are digging into my arm.

"Atheeeeeena, don't you recognize me?" she says as she squeezes my arm.

"What? How do you know my name?" I say back, confused. I tug my arm backwards, but her nails are latched on too tightly.

Tia pulls me back.

"Medusa." I hear her whisper.

I throw the money onto the counter and grab our stuff. Medusa lunges over the counter in attempts to grab me. Tia and I run out of 7/11, yelling at Cy to open the door. He doesn't hear us. Meanwhile, Medusa is right behind us, hissing. Cy finally hears us, and unlocks the doors. We throw the food into the car, and slam the door. Medusa nearly makes it into the backseat, but Tia closes the door on her fingers. We hear Medusa outside, wailing in pain, as I start up the engine. I reverse the car, and roll over her hair. Her awful weave comes off, and her snakes are revealed. I drive off quickly, and head to the beach.

"You guys still have the note, right?" I ask out of breath.

"Yeah, don't worry. I took pictures of it, and backed it up onto several thumb drives last night just in case." Tia says. "You realize Medusa isn't dead though right? She might come back. We have to watch out."

"Medusa?" Cy asks.

"Yes dumbass, that's why we were yelling at you to open the door, and why the store clerk was chasing us." I reply.

"Oh. I thought she was just on crack or something."

"Didn't you see her snakes?" Tia asks.

"No, I was honestly more focused on the food."

I roll my eyes. "Well, let's just hope that we get to the beach without anymore incidents, and hope that the twins are there." I say.

Luckily, we do. We get to the beach without anymore incidents, besides this one car who swerved into my lane and almost hit us. We find parking, and walk over to the beach. It's empty. The waves look amazing though. I hope the twins show up. Cy decides to go in the water while Tia and I eat.

"What if they don't show up? And it was all a fake?" I ask.

"No they'll show up, I can feel it. The attack by Medusa this morning has to mean something. Besides, if it was a fake, who would go through the trouble of writing an encrypted note, and then getting someone to attack us?" Tia says.

"You're probably right. I just hope they show up soon."

We continue to eat, and Cy continues to surf. Eventually, a colossal wave appears, and completely breaks Cy's board in half.

"Oh crap, I hope he can get out of the water." I say.

Cy flounders in the water helplessly; I have to go save him. I start running towards the water, but just as I get there, Cy emerges, standing on the water. He levitates on the waves, the water crashing around him.

"Siiiiick dude! I can stand on water! I wonder what else I can do!" Cy says excitedly.

"Are you alright?" I ask.

"Well, I was struggling at first, but then I heard a voice in my head telling me to channel the water, and to concentrate on standing up....I started concentrating, and then I could breathe underwater. What if it was Dad?"

I don't reply. Parents are a touchy subject. Maybe we actually do have powers...

"Thena!" Tia yells. "Kala and Mahina are here!"

Mahina waves at us. She has a note in her hand. Cy and I quickly run to shore, and Tia grabs our note as we run up to them.

"Hi guys...I know this sounds weird, but Kala and I felt compelled to meet you guys here. We had this note for a couple of days, and it told us to meet you here. We honestly thought it was a fake, but it seemed dire. Plus maybe we could meet our real parents..." Mahina says.

"You guys are orphans too?" Cy asks.

"That's pretty rude, Cy." Tia says.

"No, it's fine. We've been orphans for like 4 years now, but we can't seem to remember who our parents are, or really anything of our childhood." Kala adds.

"Us too." I add. "Do you mind reading us your note?"

"Kala and Mahina, I am Hermes, the messenger god. I am with your parents. The major gods of Olympus are in trouble, and we need the help of our children. Each god and goddess had an offspring, respectively, who have inherited our powers. We call them 'The Pure.' But you can't do this on your own. You must find the rest of The Pure, and work together to save your parents from the wrath of Eros and Psyche. Start on Sunday by going to Makapu'u beach, and find the child of the sea, the heart of the Earth, and the wise one. Following that, work together to find the one who lives in the dark. Bring your passports as the dark can only be found in the place of Mexi. Please hurry, the fate of the world is in your hands." Mahina read to us.

"The one that lives in the dark?" Cy says.

"I think that means we're going to Mexico..." I add. "Maybe there's a faster way of getting there. Cy, by any chance do you think we'd make it all the way to Mexico by ocean?"

"Sis, you must actually be stupid. If you haven't noticed, we live in the middle of the fucking ocean. What are we going to do? Swim?"

"No dumbass, you figured out how to use your powers. Maybe you can generate a swell, and we can surf there, or figure out a way to get there faster. We can't just book a plane ride. Don't you think a bunch of kids impulsively booking a flight to Mexico, who have no idea when they are returning is a bit suspicious?"

"This whole thing is suspicious. I'm gonna go try out my powers though."

"Make sure no one sees you." Tia warns. "I honestly think I might know someone..."

"How would you know someone who lives in Mexico if you've never been there?" I ask.

"Well, one of my friends moved to Mexico City last year because he was military or something. His name is 'Shade.' His name is actually an anagram for 'Hades,' and it implies darkness. I honestly think that's our best shot, and I don't think it's a coincidence."

"Guys I figured out a shortcut!" Cy yells.