LYSSANDRA

Hours of reading, watching the wax dripping down to the bronze plate, and trying to recover from any pain. Only nightmares could visit me. I was being hunted by my mutts around the forest. One of them caught my dress, pushing me down to the mud with the rest trying to eat every inch of me, every part of my inner soul. And I could feel each bite they were taking from my body. When they finished eating the dream became vague with me falling deep into a long dark sea. The water pressuring my flesh, my organs, the sew weeds tangling my hair and my lips were letting foam out for me to scream. Or at least imagine that I was screaming.

And then there was one more.

The room was cold with one simple candle lighting one place in it. There was an empty table and a chair with a man sitting down on it. He was old and heavy looking but it did not seem approaching as the man was also very tall. His black beard covered half of his pale face as long as his straight raven hair, it was pushed back to a red ribbon. And as for the color of his eyes… silver just I could remember. His body was dressed in a black tunic with his bloody hands holding.

‘’Let it go’’I demanded.

‘’You really could read it?’’The archpriest gasped, letting the tablet to the table.

‘’I did and I still can’’I admit it with a smile on my face.

‘’You hid it so well, staying silent for years, playing along with the others…’’He made a long pause moving to my side.’’And you are using all of them just like I used you.’’

My eyes darted and tried to push him away but suddenly I was a little girl who just lost her eye. The man was looking like a beast and his eyes were glowing.

‘’I do not use them.’’ I lied and the man laughed.

‘’You haven’t changed little girl’’The man rasped. ‘’You still believe ‘’He let his heavy hand push me back, making me fall to a cold stone. And right above my head, there was a great golden statue of Apollo with its eyes staring at me.

‘’That someone is going to save you from your ending.’’ The archpriest was now wearing a dark robe, making it difficult to see his face and expressions.

‘’That all those lies and blood you have shed,’’ There was a sound of laughter. ‘’You need those people. But they don’t need you.’’

I tried to move but a strong wind pushed me down back to the pillar. Pillar? Wasn’t it a stone?

‘’You don’t know that’’I barked at him and he revealed his face while on his other hand there was a bronze dagger.

‘’Where is he then?’’ Paris' voice echoed from Adamantious’ lips. ‘’Where is the God you longed prayed for?’’He asked before the dagger fell to my chest.

There was a memory from my dream. The bald priest is trying to wake up each child, each member of the temple, and get it out before the dark storm. The eldest members were moving the youngest outside where horses awaited for them to take everyone far.

But I was not with them. I was hiding behind the statue of Apollo and I was beginning to pray.

Do not make me go. Do not make me leave. Please save us.

‘’Where is Lyssandra? '’ The archpriest asked the rest. No response. He let out a restless breath and he later commanded. ‘’Go, I have to find her.’’

There was no light. Not from the sun or from any torch the priests had. The people were already gone but the archpriest’s heavy footsteps still existed. Just like his voice.

‘’Lyssandra’’ His tone echoed. I ignored him and started prying once more.

‘’Lyssandra we need to go’’His steps approached near the statue.

‘’No’’I pouted. ‘’ I cannot leave, he wouldn’t want that.’’

Another deep sigh and the arch-priest revealed himself to me. Even in the darkness, I could see him smiling gently at me.

‘’Apollo would want you to live. Isn’t this more important?’’

I sniffed and nodded as his hand patted the top of my head. ‘’We will find a different temple, a different sanctuary.’’He explained. ‘’You will grow up safe, in peace.’’ He scoffed. ‘’Maybe you will become a priestess…’’

‘’Do not make me leave, I will be good’’I cried.

‘’I am sorry Lyssandra but I Can't do-’’

‘’Apollo can, I can pray and he will.’’

Both of his hands grabbed my face tight. ‘’Listen’’He stated harshly.’’To me, Lyssandra once listened. We have to go. We cannot sta-’’

And everything became silent.

I woke up by falling on my seat and the melted candle dripping on my skin. I bit my lower lip and held my scream with my eyes looking outside the window. Still dark sky with no sign of sun to wake me in. I touched my forehead and I could feel that even my fingers were burning up.

I sighed and moved back to my tablets. If I had been poisoned by a snake the side effects would be specific. Maybe I could make an antidote based on those side effects.

Then again even a king’s healer did not have an antidote. A week inside my body…

‘’Hey’’A voice appeared from my window and I jumped only to see Adamantius smiling at me.

I replied with a smile back but I could feel my chest getting tighter. It was just him. Who else would it be?

‘’Hey’’I sighed and fixed myself better. But his stormy eyes looked at my arm.’’I heard that you fell and.’’

‘’You knew.’’I realized and tried to keep myself calm.

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He nodded. ‘’I thought that you did know…you always know things like these. But’’He jumped inside my room and he tried to laugh as his hand cupped my face. Instead of following his tactic, I slapped his hand away shut back to my seat and started reading once more.

Seconds of silence before he spoke once more.

‘’Do you remember on that ship we were so we could go on Crete?’’

I nodded. ‘’yes, it was months of sew sickness.’’

‘’We did not have money so we tried to sneak in but they found us.’’ He laughed and sat on the floor next to me. I waited for him to finish his thoughts.

‘’They threatened us to throw us at the sea, Thais started to fight them, biting them’’

Another long pause.

‘’And you were hiding while you were poisoning their water. All of them started vomiting even their healer and…’’

‘’I told them that I can cure them if they let us stay until the destination.’’I finally let out a laugh and winced at him. ‘’Gods it was still a terrible journey.’’

‘’But you found a way to make it out’’ There was a soft tone coming from his harsh face.’’You always find a way to..’’His fingers traced the ground but his gaze fell to me. Just by looking at me like that, as if I was his salvation, made my heart race.

‘’If it wasn’t for you me, Thais, even the others we would be either dead or worse. He stood on his knees and stayed close to me, watching me.

They don’t need you.

I laughed and tried to avoid his kind eyes. ‘’You really believe that I can do it? That I can survive it?’’

His hand embraced mine. ‘’I know that you will do everything to survive’’His angle of his lips slipped one more grin.’’ That’s what I lo-’’

My eyes opened wide. Adamantious’ lips got pressed to a thin line as his cheeks flushed deep red. ‘’Lys’’ He gasped with his thoughts not forming from his mouth.

You need them. They do not need you.

The king will find the truth.

You will be a sacrifice.

Where is he?

Another pain attacked my body and held it tight. But I could see how worried he was. ‘’Let me stay here tonight’’He suggested. ‘’I will help you with whatever you need and..’’

I shook my head. ‘’No’’I grabbed my arm tight. ‘’It will be alright I will figure out a way’’I narrowed and made a fake smile at him.

So he left by kissing my forehead and wishing me a goodnight.

I will figure it out. I will figure everything out. I won’t die. I will never die.

The sun arrived late this time but it did not matter as I hadn’t even slept after that nightmare. But maybe if I could close my eyes, Maybe…

‘’Lyssandra’’ Thais screamed and fully woke me up.

‘’What’’I drooled and she seemed to have her knife around her waist.

‘’Dion is here…alone.’’

Alone?

It was true. He was there, standing with no weapon and a bruised nose that almost made me lose my laughter. He looked as if he had an eggplant for his nose. He kept staring at me coldly with a childish snarl but he did not seem to be attacking.

‘’Why are you here?’’I asked him.

He laughed.’’ Don’t you know? I thought that you knew everything. Didn’t the king tell you?’’

The sun wasn’t even set and he started tumbling like an idiot.

My brow twitched and pushed my veil lower to my head. Everyone was outside, ready to fight. Thais and Adamantious sure were.

But Dion raised his hands.

‘’I have an order from King Perseus to be here’’His voice was surprisingly…gentle. He never spoke like that.

‘’He ordered me to be alone ‘’There was his raspy angry voice.’’So you can drop out your weap-’’

I turned to Myrto who was sitting on the stairs, still having a dizzy look. ‘’He is not lying.’’She whispered.

‘’Of course, not’’Another voice answered right in front of me. My eyes snapped as between me and Dion there was standing a woman we had never seen before. She was older than both of us with her pressed raven hair set free for the wind to push them around as it was pleasing.

‘’Who are you?’’Adamantious asked but I saw the green dress she was wearing around her milk skin and the sigil she had to hold it. Or rather two. A sigil of Medusa on the left and on the right…. There was a Caduceus.

‘’You are a messenger?’’I asked the woman. She let out a smirk as she turned to me with her pitch-black eyes. ‘’I am a messenger of King Perseus.’’She corrected me and moved closer to me as if she were jumping with her bare feet. I did not realize how pretty she was. She kept a wicked smile on her lips as she was staring at me with her nightless eyes as if she were waiting for something.

‘’Why are you a messenger exactly?’’Dion scoffed but Adara ignored him completely.

‘’You must be Oracle Lyssandra’’sang Adara and leaned closer to me and her cold lips let a kiss on my cheek. Her hair let out a sweet rosy scent and moved on my nose.

My entire face turned red as I moved away but I could see her still smiling with Dion and the others staying shocked.

What was the right reaction at that moment? Not staying silent for the rest of the conversation.

‘’I am here’’Adara spoke and moved back in the middle .’’Because the King has made his mind about the…’’Her fingers moved around and noticed all the rings she was wearing.

‘’Conflict?’’

‘’She is a liar’’Dion pointed at me.’’And a thief.’’

‘’And you are interrupting me’’Adara snarled and I started giggling.

‘’So he decided to make a challenge for the winter solstice.’’

‘’It is five moons away’’I said.

‘’Yes you have five moons’’She moved around. ‘’Five moons to catch Python and present it in the King’s presence for the festivities. The winners will remain here with the king’s protection and the ones that will lose.’’’A long pause but both me and Dion knew the answer. Leave the village. And I knew clearly that the moment I would step out of it I would be dead. We were all dead by him. And he did not seem to hide the idea of it.

‘’So?’’Adara turned to him and then me. I was ready to turn back to the others.

‘’What are you going to choose archpriests?’’Adara asked gently.

Right. I had no time to think, I had no time to discuss. I would do everything to make it out alive. Even if it means fighting the snake that poisoned me.

‘’Alright’’I nodded and saw Dion narrowing at me.

‘’Alright’’He huffed at the end and Adara laughed with her finger revealing a silver coin. ‘’Perfect.’’