The Last Theiro

18

Tessa
•••

Alec was silent. His gaze that had been lingering on the wound on my forehead dropped to his wrist, and to an ancient-looking gold watch. He swore under his breath.

"I wasn't paying attention, we're late." He rose from the bed and ran his hands over the small stubble that covered his chin.

"Late for what?"

But instead of answering, Alec ignored me and grabbed my hand. He tugged me along behind him like I was nine and not nineteen.

Out of breath wasn't a good word for how tired I was when we finally reached our destination. Alec, on the other hand, didn't look like he had broken a single drop of sweat.

Something clicked in my head as we slowed to a stop. I could remember a large abandoned house and a swarm of fireflies in a field of tall dry grass. I felt a memory began rising to the surface of my mind. The same word kept flashing in my head. Reign.

"Hey, are you listening to me?"

I felt the memory slip back into my subconscious and out of reach at least for now.

Alec frowned at me. "That memory is gone. Stop wasting your time on it." He paused and looked away from me. "We have more important matters."

I narrowed my eyes at Alec. Where did the caring man I knew disappear too? Alec was now cold. Distant.

"Alec, are you okay?"

His blue orbs stared into mine. But his stare was different too. Like he was hiding something.

"You're late." A voice boomed from behind us. I jumped at least two inches out of my skin.

I turned to see a tall, slender, and very athletic woman with ebony black hair pulled up into a tight bun. She was dressed in a black leather baggy pants, worn-looking boots, and a red tank top. She stood on a stone platform in the middle of a large area. An arena?

The lady's lips tilted up into a smile. "Aah, The Last Theiro. What a pleasure it is."

The stone platform floated towards me and she lowered it with a wave of her hand. Once the platform was ground level, she gingerly hopped off and approached me, stopping right in front of us. She towered over me by a good foot, and I wasn't a short girl. I noticed she had several freckles dotting the bridge of her nose.

"What does it mean to be a Herculean?" She surprised me by asking.

"Wait...I'm...no."

"Come on, spit it out. If you weren't late, you would have more time to answer." She raised her chin and looked down at me.

"Umm... Wait I remember! To be Herculean means to have the strength of a beast."

Kelis's face broke out into a wide grin.
"Thatagirl." The giant lady slapped my back, hard. So hard, that it left me gasping for air.

"Oh sorry, did I knock the breath out of you?" She said noticing my distress and I nodded. "Sometimes I don't know my own strength." She laughed. "I'm Kelis Harty. You can call me Miss Hart."