Rebecca Miller's

Prologue.

Hi, my name is Roxy, well my nickname is Roxy my full name is Roxanna Medea Jones but I prefer Roxy or Rox for short, I really hate my middle name, apparently my dad chose it but I never saw why she used it, I mean he never did anything for me or mum.

My mum said that if I ever meet my dad I would feel different then, but I didn’t agree, if he’d really left mum and then ignored her for fifteen years then I wouldn’t give a damn what happened to him.

But as I turns out I was wrong.

I do care.

I kind of have to care.

I mean he is my father.

********

Chapter 1.

This is my story.

I was fifteen, we lived in a small flat in London, my mum and me and I would still be there now if I hadn’t persuaded my mum to buy a lottery ticket.

We won one eighth of the whole thing, not quite whole thing, but sixty thousand pounds, I persuaded my mum to book a plane to Greece and a room each at a big beachfront hotel.

From the moment I got there it felt good, I could do whatever I wanted, buy whatever I wanted and, best of all I got to meet another girl in a similar position, Katriona (Kat for short) had pointed out that some of the accountings on her dad’s bank statement were not things he’d bought, he’d been given fifty thousand in compensation and had done the same with the money as my mum had.

Kat was fifteen and a half so we were similar in age, Kat was way smarter than me but she didn’t like to stay still, a bit like me I can’t sit still for longer than a minute.

“So tell me about your dad, who is he?”

“What?”

“You don’t know?”

“Don’t know what?”

“About your dad and stuff”

“No, what stuff?”

“You’re not human, well not all human, you’re half god, half Greek god”

“Okay” I said the funny thing was I believed her, I’d always known I was different in some way.

“You believe me?”

“Yes” I wished I were saying no

“Thank the gods”

“Are you too?”

“Yes”

“Who is your mum?”

“Athena, that’s why I know so much stuff”

I thought about it. “So who is my dad?”

“I don’t know, could be anyone, Apollo, Dionysus, even Zeus, Hades or Poseidon”

“Oh” I cursed myself for thinking that she would know

“But I can find out”

“You can? How?”

“Here, drink this” Kat pulled a flask from her bag

“What is it?” I asked

“Identifier, Apollo makes it and my mum gave it to me”

“What’s it do?”

“Tells you who your parent is”

“Awesome” I took the bottle from Kat and took a sip

I am Poseidon, I claim you as mine. Come to me child for there are things we must discuss.

********

Chapter 2.

“Who was it?”  Kat’s voice cut through the echoes of Poseidon’s voice.

“Poseidon”

“Come again?”

“Poseidon”

“Are you having me on?”

“Nope” I said, “he said to come see him but how do I find him?”

A woman in a suit came over “walk into the sea, a dolphin will find you” she said

“Hello mum” said Kat shyly

“Oh” I said, “hello Athena”

“Oh hello dear good holiday?”

“Yes, I’ve got a feeling it won’t last for long though”

“Don’t worry, I’ll tell your mother”

Two hours later I said goodbye to my mum and backpack on I walked into the sea. Kat followed me in.

Now I think I’d better explain myself, it took two hours to prepare because we’d been praying to my father so we could breathe and stuff.

Once we were completely submerged two dolphins came, we each grabbed the dorsal fin of one dolphin and soon they were carrying us into the deeper waters.

Unexpectedly soon we were so deep we couldn’t actually see the dolphins in front of us. Then, suddenly out of the murky darkness came a light, a huge underwater palace loomed out of the murky water, and suddenly I knew where I was. The palace of Poseidon. Home.

The dolphins stopped outside the pearl doors to the palace and let us dismount. A large bronze bell hung on the wall I rang it. Scarcely a second later the door flew open and a man in a t-shirt shorts and flip-flops and a gold trident in his hand smiled at us. “Hello girls come on in. I’ve been expecting you. I hope you’ve already guessed but in case you haven’t I am of course Poseidon”

My dad took Kat and I into the palace we went into a room filled with sofas, chairs and coffee tables.

“I hope you’re not disappointed with my house, I’m not one for formality or posh rooms and stuff”

“Nah” I said, “me neither”

“Now Kat, your name is Kat isn’t it?” Kat nodded

“Good, I expect that you’ve heard it all before so I’ll say this for the benefit of my daughter.” Taking a deep breath Poseidon began. “Approximately sixteen years ago a prophecy was made, Kat would you be so kind as to recite it?”

“Um yes sir.” Kat began to recite the words.

“Three children of the gods

The three most powerful

Two girls, one boy

Kronos they must fight

Fail they might unless

The daughter of the wisest

Travels with the first of three

But be warned

The price is the life of thee”

“Good,” said Poseidon “I’ll make it simple, from what we have deduced the prophecy means that we, that is Zeus, Hades and I will each have a child, this has, of course happened, I have you, Hades has a girl, strange named Xanthe or Xena or some such something or other, and Zeus has a son, Luke I think or Larry or Barry or Harry. Well you get the idea I hope. Anyway,” he continued, “ the rest seems pretty damn obvious, and you have to fight Kronos, the titan lord you will fail without a daughter of Athena, probably Kat, although it might be another”

********

Chapter 3.

“Now, I’d have to be a really rubbish father to send you off on a quest with nothing but instructions and a good luck wish so I got you this.” He passed me a gold eyeliner.

“Um, thanks but no thanks, gold eyeliner is so weird”

“I know, I know but this isn’t eyeliner take off the lid”

I took off the lid. Immediately it grew and the end split into three prongs until it was a hefty gold trident.

“Nice, thanks dad”

“Hey, no problem and I got you this.” He passed me a gold ring set with an emerald.

“Put that on your middle finger, left hand then press the emerald.”

I did as I was told and a huge gold shield with a small emerald in the middle spiralled out.

“Nice, how do I get rid of it?”

“Press the emerald and it should shrink again”

I pressed the emerald and the shield shrunk again.

“Good,” said Poseidon “now for the best bit, I hope you like horses”

“I love them”

“Good, best thing I ever made you know”

“Yeah”

“Now this is the real deal not a half-breed”

“Not a half breed what?”

“Pegasus” with that word a pure white horse with beautiful wings trotted through the door.

~Right boss. Is this your kid? echoed inside my head.

“Yep” said my dad

~Hi lady

“Hello Pegasus”

Kat stared at us “are you…?”

“Yes we are” said Poseidon

“How did you know what I was going to ask?”

“I’m a god”

“Oh”

An hour later we had a map, fresh clothes and everything else we’d need.

“Oh, Roxy I’ve got something for you, to make up for fifteen years of presents that I haven’t given you.” So saying, dad handed me a box, I opened the box and inside was a beautiful gold bracelet in the shape of a dolphin set with sapphires with two glimmering emeralds for eyes.

“Thanks dad, it’s beautiful”

“I’m glad you like it, it’s a traditional gift, anyway off you go, I don’t like long goodbyes.”

“Where are we going?” I asked

“To the underworld, now off you go,” replied Poseidon

“Okay dad, see you.”

I clambered onto Pegasus and said, “go”

“Yes lady” and Pegasus went, almost as soon as we were airborne Kat screamed, I felt like doing the same.

********

Chapter 4.

As we left my fathers palace we suddenly realised we were no longer under water, when I pointed this out to Kat she said it was god power, not something I should question.

As we flew out into the sunlight we were heading towards Athens and the underworld, we flew as fast as possible towards Crete, the sun was long since set by the time we arrived and a pink glow was topping the edge of the east horizon as the sun began to rise once more.

We walked leading Pegasus towards a restaurant as per my father’s instructions; we went up to the door and knocked five times then waited…

And waited…

And waited, finally the door opened and a distinctly rat-like man poked his head out.

“Ah good, the demigods, someone wants to see you.” he said

“Who would that be then?” asked Kat

“The master of war and conflict, lord Ares.”

“Ah” said Kat “that could be a problem”

“How so?” asked the man

“None of your business.”

“Good” he said to himself “already it starts”

We didn’t ask what he meant; I had a funny feeling we didn’t want to know.

As we walked down a gloomy corridor electric lights came on showing crumbling plaster and the remains of peeling wallpaper, a battered wooden door made an abrupt end to the corridor. As we reached the old door a voice bade us enter.

We did and saw a man in black clothes sitting on a leather chair.

“Ah good, you two are here”

“What’s it to you?”

“I have against my better judgement agreed to provide an army when, or if as I very much doubt you’ll make it to that stage, you confront Kronos”

“Hurrah” I muttered, “thanks for your encouragement”

“I did hear that”

“So what?”

“So shut your face”

“You shut your face” interjected Kat

“How dare you tell me to shut my face?”

“Very easily”’

“SILENCE, I WILL NOT BE SPOKEN TO LIKE THAT!” bellowed Ares

“Pig headed git” I said

“Good, well done you might actually do this, I wish you luck.” Said Ares in a calm cold voice that suggested he meant exactly the opposite of what he said.

Then he vanished.

“Will your ladyships and Pegasus come through to the twin room?” said the rat-like man who had opened the door.

“Yes” I said, “we will”

********

Chapter 5.

The following morning when we woke we put on fresh clothes, ate the breakfast that had been left outside the door and looked for the doorman, funnily enough we found him next to the door.

“Ah madam and madam how may I be of assistance?”

“You can tell us the way to the temple of Poseidon at Sounio”

“But that is a way to the underworld!”

“That is the point”

“But you cannot go there it is folly!”

“Okay buster, lets get this straight, we can and we will. Now where is it?”

“Turn left from the big square, then follow the signposts.”

“Thank you, we’re going now.”

As we left the building we unconsciously reached for Pegasus’s sturdy back and held onto his white horsehair mane, as we continued down the cobbled street we reached the ‘big square’ we took the left street and walked straight into a signpost pointing to the temple of Poseidon at Sounio.

Half a mile and one or two interesting conversations later we had reached the temple of Poseidon we stopped in the exact centre of the temple and knelt, we brushed the dust and dirt off the floor an revealed a symbol, a leaping dolphin.

“Kat, have you got the disc?” I asked, referring to an object that my father had given Kat to get us into the underworld without either of us dying.

~Lady, uh I’m coming too ain’t I?

“Of course” I said

“What are you on about?” asked a befuddled Kat

“What, oh I’m talking to Pegasus”

“Oh, I got really confused, here it is.” So saying Kat handed me the disc, I took it and pressed it into the mirror image indentation on the floor.

~Lady, if I’m coming hold my mane or I’ll get left behind!

Pegasus sounded so urgent I panicked and grabbed his mane, the world distorted and blurred, all colours vanished, then my consciousness departed and I blacked out.

I came around almost immediately, just in time to see Kat vanish, then a strange sense of weightlessness surrounded me and I too vanished from the earth.

I was standing by a grey river surrounded by a quite different sensation to the one I had left behind, it was a heavy smothering feeling, like a pillow wrapped about the head, muffling the senses, it was the heavy claustrophobic feel of death and all that accompanied it.

I looked around and saw Pegasus stood next to me, I knew he was as white as new snow but he seemed somehow darker, greyer and dirtier than he really was, we stood by a river, also unusually grey, even for a dirty river, but this river was clean, no crisp packets, old washing machines. Nothing, zilch, zip.

********

Chapter 6.

A cobweb-eyed spectre floated out of the fog and spoke in a voice that wasn’t quite there: “my master lord Hades wishes your company”

“Well he can shove his wishes up his…” I began

“We’d be delighted to oblige him” interrupted Kat, turning to me she hissed, “you do not refuse a god, ever and you most certainly do not tell them to shove something up their arse”

The bemused spectre watched us impassive and said in the same empty voice “your friend is wise, you should pay more attention to her. Now follow me”

As we followed the spectre I began to realise what the river was, it was the river Styx, the river of the underworld, and it began to dawn on me where I was, the underworld, the underworld damn, damn, damn, damn! Who was I kidding? Who did I think I was? How could I possibly save the world?

~Easy lady, you’re the boss’s kid, you can do anything. Oh and lady think your answers, then you don’t sound stupid all the time. Pegasus’s voice, cut through my despair.

~Um Pegasus? I experimented

~Yo lady?

~Were you reading my mind?

~Uh yeah sorry lady.

~Don’t worry; just tell me before you do.

~Okay lady, will do.

For a couple of minutes we walked on I silence, there were no conversations either mental or verbal.

“We are come to the palace,” said the spectre “go inside, follow the corridor, go through the door at the end. Do not go anywhere else or it shall be fatal”

I started; we were at the oak doors of a huge black granite palace, and I knew it was Hades’ palace, his home. And we had to go inside, we were expected, expected by the lord of death, something told me it wasn’t going to be a tea party, something bad was going to happen, only I didn’t know what it was yet.

As we entered the corridor we saw hundreds of black doors leading to other rooms and corridors, linking the huge palace together. As I walked along I reached up and patted Pegasus’ neck, I could sense his unease. The corridor was about four hundred meters long; I took about two minutes to walk the length of it, when we did reach the end a huge oak door with silver inlay in ancient Greek letters stood, it was the match of the one outside, except smaller. Obviously.

Kat raised her fist and knocked three times, the noise echoed along the corridor then faded away.

As soon as the echoes had died the door swung open, another spectre stood or rather floated in the doorway.

“Take the left hand passage when this one splits, follow it until you reach the end. Do not go anywhere else or it shall be fatal”

I thanked it and continued on my way, Kat and Pegasus followed. The door was exactly as I expected, the same as the two preceding it, when we reached this third door Kat knocked again, we got the same result although this time we had to go up the stairs at the corridors end. At the fourth door (this was at the top of the stairs) we got a different result, the ghost of a woman with long black hair stood there. “Lord Hades is ready now,” she said.

We went in, ‘lord Hades’ was indeed ready for us.

“Sit” he said motioning to a black sofa. We sat; I politely enquired what he wanted.

“Thank you for asking, I would like you to come with me, we are going to visit Kronos”

“Ah” said Kat

********

Chapter 7.

Hades led us to a door in one wall of the room he opened it to reveal a stone passage with steps cut into the downward sloping floor. As we entered the passage the door slammed shut. Hades smiled “I do have the key, don’t worry.” I decided no to, I honestly didn’t see the point.

The passage went down and down to the border of the lowest abyss in the underworld- Tartarus. Finally after about five minutes of silence apart from the clop clopping of Pegasus’ hooves we reached a door. The afore mentioned door was a heavy iron contraption with a lock that could only be opened from one side; ours. It crossed my mind that we wouldn’t be able to get back in but I figured that Hades would’ve gotten around that.

Once the door had been opened we all trouped through, as soon as the door had slammed shut a booming, sinister voice echoed from the abyss “so son you come to visit me again. To mock me? Or to boast of the ones who shall allegedly defeat me, the titan lord”

“Shut your face,” bellowed Hades “I am not your son”

“I no longer have a face thanks to you and your treacherous mother” came the voice.

“Mother Rhea is a wonderful person”

“You only say that because she is your mother, and I am your father”

“Only biologically, but not morally” said Kat

“Who speaks?”

“None of your business” I said

“Ah” said the voice, “another one?”

“Yes get over it,” I said

“Not your daughter is it?”

“No, she is organising the furies for something or other” replied Hades, then without another word he turned, put on a shiny black helmet and vanished.

About ten seconds later the door opened, I didn’t ask how I just went through, the door shut behind us and we began going back up the passage, I quickly realised I preferred going down, it was easier.

“How did you open the door?” I asked Hades

“Helmet of Darkness love, it allows the wearer, that’s me” he patted himself fondly “to go through walls and become invisible and so on and so forth. The only ones who have such a device are me and my daughter”

“You have a daughter?”

“Yep, Xanthe is her name”

We carried on talking for some time in this manner, pleasant small talk nothing more.

When we reached the door we had first entered the passage from (the one that led to Hades’ office) and he unlocked it using a heavy iron key, in we went, we resumed our seats and faced Hades. As I watched he reached under the ebony desk and pulled out a small silver bell. Hades rang it, the bell made no sound in the house, but I knew wherever Xanthe was the bell would ring loud and clear.

********

Chapter 8.

Twenty minutes later Xanthe came into the room “hi” she said, “I’m Xanthe, you must be Roxanna and Katriona, you” (here she pointed at me) “are Roxanna, and you” (here she pointed at Kat) “are Katriona” Kat scowled “Kat NOT Katriona”

“Yeah and Rox or Roxy will be fine thanks” as I spoke I noticed her abnormally pale skin, her black eyes and her ruler straight hair, I had a feeling her hair was naturally straight.

“Cool, I prefer to be called Xanthe ‘cause there ain’t no way to shorten Xanthe.”

“Grammar Xanthe, grammar” said Hades crossly

“Sorry dad” replied Xanthe she turned to me again “can I show them around dad?”

“Um, yeah, why don’t you show them your room?”

“Yeah, okay,” said Xanthe happily and off we went. Twenty minutes later we were in a large room full of black cushions, black chairs, black tables and cupboards of clothes all in black, even the walls and ceiling were in a black paint. Xanthe dragged a backpack out from under the bed and put clothes, toothbrush sleeping bag and a popup tent in it.

“How do you fit all that in one bag?” I asked

“God power” Xanthe answered, “what colour sleeping bag green, blue? What?”

“Uh green please.” Xanthe put a green sleeping bag in.

“And you?” she asked Kat

“Um, white please,” answered Kat. Xanthe added a white sleeping bag.

“Right, all packed.” She said. Then the sound of a bell filled the room, “dad wants us” she cried and then off she went. I followed at a more leisurely pace.

When I reached the office room Xanthe was sweeping some things into the bag, she left a flick-knife out in the table along with a black box, as I watched she opened the box and drew out a bracelet, it was a silver snake studded with black diamonds with rubies for eyes. Xanthe put the bracelet on and picked up the knife, she flicked it out, as the blade opened out it grew into a long sword blade and the handle broadened into a sword hilt that had a silver skull etched into it.

“Nice” I said

“Yeah” said Xanthe and pushed on the sword’s blade, immediately it transformed back into a flick-knife.

Two hours later we were ready to leave the underworld after getting supplies, fresh clothes and other necessities, Hades led us to a stairway off the main corridor on the top floor, this corridor would take us to the living world, in a small Italian village with some old Greek ruins, once we got there we would have to go underwater to the coast of Greece, cross the country in three days, find Zeus’s son and return to fight Kronos.

********

Chapter 9.

As we began to climb the stair I realised it would take several days, it did…

On the first day we climbed non-stop until we were too tired to continue, when we were we located a small hut on a rocky outcrop close to the stair. Wearily we all trouped inside and began to unroll sleeping bags and pump up air beds while Kat cooked sausages on a small gas hob, also out of the magic bag.

We ate our sausages gratefully and began to tidy up; as soon as we were finished I fed Pegasus and went to sleep.

The following morning we ate bacon and eggs for breakfast and began to climb the stair once more. Again we climbed for hours and stopped in another hut and repeated the procedure of the previous day, but as I was feeding Pegasus he spoke to me;

~Uh, lady someone or something is following us. I thanked Pegasus and went back inside to tell the others. Xanthe at least was calm but Kat was almost blue in the face by the time she’d finished yelling at Xanthe for telling her to calm down.

For five more days we climbed the stair, only ever stopping to eat and sleep, but on the sixth day we heard the heavy breathing of- something but what? What was this thing that panted like a dog? Soon, very soon we would find out, but now we had to climb and get to the world of life as fast as possible.

That evening Pegasus came indoors with us and we locked and bolted the doors and windows, then decided on a watch rota, Xanthe would halve the first watch, I the second and Kat the last.

I woke up to see Xanthe peering around the door whispering to something, or herself. I hoped it was herself or we were in big trouble.

“Xanthe?” I murmured Xanthe whipped around, long dark hair swirling around her face “yes” she whispered back

“Whom are you talking to?”

“Oh I was just thinking aloud”

“Good, I thought you were talking to someone else”

“Flipping hell I already told you I wasn’t talking to no-one” Xanthe’s grammar was slipping again as often happened when she was angry or stressed.

Then Kat opened her eyes, “she was talking to someone, or rather something, and she’s got a hellhound out there Rox” she cried.

********

Epilogue.

This is the end of my part of the story.

I will now let Xanthe carry on where I have left off, I will have to trust her to report events accurately as I have but she has promised she will try.

You will see how the story continues because it has only just begun but rest assured that after the interim you will not be bored as there is much, much more to come.

I hope you will continue to read once Xanthe has done her part of the tale and passed it on to the next person who is justified to write it.

The end

From me.

Ocean’s Child