Chapter Five: I Go Back In Time With Some Goddesses

I woke up in the middle of the night, sure I'd heard something. Groggy and tired, I strained my ears, listening hard for any noise. Hearing nothing, I forced my eyes open and looked around. A clock on the far wall had silver arrow hands showing it was 3:27.

I pushed my hair out of my face, rubbed my eyes, and stood up to go towards the door.

I stumbled back against the cot behind me; the noise had happened again. It was a gushing noise, like water. No, it was a whispering noise, coming from one of the other cabins. Either way, I readied myself to check it out.

Relax, maybe it's fine. This may be the way most horror movies start, but it's probably fine. With that happy thought, I took a final deep breath and opened the door.

Everything seemed as I had convinced myself earlier, fine. It's just your mind playing tricks on you, everyone's asleep, only a weirdo would be up at 3 AM. That explains why I'm up then. And why I'm talking to myself.

As I turned back to the door, I heard the noise again, louder, and more clear. I could almost make out what the whispers were saying.

"do you know—something something—Carlos." A pause, "do you know—something something—Carlos."

Well, that's not right. It's something else. I stepped back onto the cabin's front porch, walking off of it and onto the grass. The grass tickled my bare feet as I stepped off the last of the stairs of the porch and onto the ground. The fire was out, but the moon and stars shone brightly, as did the reflective roof of cabin eight.

And something else, a slight blue glow coming from cabin 3. Curiosity overruled reason, and I headed over to the cabin.

Closer up, I noticed the grandeur of the three cabins at the bend of the U. The ones marked one and two were both very reminiscent of the Parthenon or some kind of ancient greek building. It was weird because though they were all cabins for the Greek gods, this was the only one that kind of hit you over the head with it. It was a pristine white, with pillars and carved designs; the whole shebang. Classic Zeus and Hera.

Whereas the one marked number three was more… simple. But this simplicity was much more beautiful than the over-the-top ones at the head. The walls of rough grey stone were studded with seashell and coral, but they didn't look the way I'd seen them in gift shops and pictures. These seemed so alive like I was looking at them on the bottom of the ocean where they were happy. If that makes any sense.

I caught a glance of something moving. I realized it was the door, unlatched and moving in the night breeze.

The light was coming from inside there. I moved closer, though every bone in my body screamed at me not to. You're an idiot, have fun getting murdered in there. I said to myself as though I wasn't the one doing it.

The noise grew louder as I pushed open the door and ventured inside.

This room was vacant and had been for a while. Unlike cabin eleven this one had only one bunk, neatly made, placed lengthways on the wall. The blue glow was coming from a beautiful water fountain in the back corner of the room. It seemed to be made of some kind of sea rock, or maybe it was stone, and it sprayed mist out the open window behind it. In the moonlight, it created a beautiful little rainbow.

As I moved towards this, the whispered words became clearer, like a picture coming into focus. Rather than the gibberish I had heard before, I now understood the words δύο δραχμές, σε παρακαλώ.

Wait, hold on. Only then did I realize why I didn't understand the words before. If I lost focus even for a second, they turned to gibberish. It was all Greek to me. Literally. But when I concentrated the words unscrambled, forming the sentence "Two drachmas please."

An image flashed in my mind of what Dessa had told me earlier. "The ADHD is because your body's trained for battle." "Dyslexia is because your brain is hardwired to read ancient Greek."

I winced, the flashback had caused an ache to come over my head, but only for a second. I can understand ancient Greek? But that doesn't help if I don't have any drachmas to give them. I looked into the pool of shimmery water, where several drachmas sat, waiting.

Okay, that's cool, but I still don't know what to do with them. I scooped up two of the large gold coins in my left hand. With my right, I searched for some sort of slot or something to put them into. After a minute or so with no success, I squatted down and looked at the base of the fountain. Setting down the coins, I started running both my hands around the whole structure to feel for any kind of hole.

Five minutes of careful inspection later left me with nothing. And the words were getting annoying. I had stopped concentrating hard enough to translate them long ago.

"Why am I doing this?! I don't even have a stupid reason to try and figure out how to work this stupid fountain!" It came out a little louder than I meant it to. In my frustration, I picked up one of the coins and threw it out the window. It flipped through the air a few times before stopping in the middle of the rainbow. There it shimmered and disappeared altogether.

The words sounded different now; I concentrated.

παρακαλώ μια δραχμή, or "One drachma please".

I picked up the other coin and turned it over in my hands, before throwing it into the mist as well. This time, the mist flashed an even bigger rainbow that covered the whole window. As the light diminished, where a window was a minute ago now sat some sort of silvery portal.

For a second I sat there, stunned by the brilliant light that temporarily blinded me. But as my eyes came back into focus, I saw someone coming out of the portal. No, not someone, 4 someones.

One of them barely made it through the portal in time, they cursed in ancient greek.

"Σιωπή! την τρομάζεις." said the first one.

"Αθηνά, ξεχνάς ότι μιλάει αγγλικά. είναι απλή θνητή." Scolded the one who had cursed.

But Athena was not to be taken as a fool. "Όχι, αν της μίλησα, θα χρησιμοποιούσα Αγγλικά, αλλά σας μιλώ."

"Honestly, both of you!" Said the third. "Το πιασα." She turned to me. "Hey, what's up?"

I was shocked. I wanted to say something to them that would make me appear confident, witty, and maybe sarcastic. A combination of adjectives even without memory I knew no one had ever used to describe me. I wanted to say that I could understand them, that they didn't scare me, or something like that. But that would only sound dumb coming from a "mere mortal".

Then it hit me.

I had never tried speaking it, but I was sure I could do it. The words materialized in my head and rearranged themselves into a new sentence. One completely made up of ancient greek. It felt as though a minute had passed since she had asked the question, but the clock told me it had been only 5 seconds. Hmm, must be ADHD.

I crossed my arms and rolled my eyes at the goddess who had said that I couldn't understand them. "Στην πραγματικότητα, αυτός ο απλός θνητός μπορεί να σας καταλάβει αρκετά καλά." (If you're wondering, I said 'Actually, this mere mortal can understand you quite well.')

Then I turned to the nicer one and said. "Not much, just getting roasted by some randos, what about you?"

I could see her try and hold in the laughter, but it only lasted a second before she burst out laughing. Her eyes sparkled when she laughed, and being a brilliant rainbow of colors, reminded me of Dessa's.

"We don't have time for this. He will notice us soon, even with your protection." Artemis responded, looking annoyed.

At this point, my brain was catching up with me. Artemis, Athena—I was speaking to the most powerful beings in this universe. "You're—you're the Artemis? You're my mo—"

"No."

"Then why—"

"This is Athena, Aphrodite, and Iris." She said, ignoring the question.

I lost all confidence, all hope of appearing strong in front of them. I also lost the ability to talk. I couldn't find the words to form a sentence asking any of the million questions floating around in my brain.

"But then—how did—why did—" I stuttered, desperately trying to form a cohesive sentence.

Athena saved me from embarrassing myself any further by interjecting. "I find that when you are confused by the present, it is most helpful to go back to the beginning."

With a grin on her face, Iris snapped her fingers and the water fountain disappeared. Now there was only the window, which expanded into a giant screen. As though I was watching a movie, a scene appeared on the screen.

In it, a young girl was walking up to a big house. She wore a pair of jean shorts and a blue tank top covered by an unbuttoned blue flannel shirt. Her golden-brown hair was woven into two dutch braids, and a small curl by her ear hung loosely at her jaw.

The door opened and she walked inside. The scene skipped forward a minute or so to her being in a big empty living area. She sat by a dark-skinned girl who, though she looked the same age, was about an inch taller.

Her image was blurred though, making it difficult to find out exactly what she looked like. The focus was on the first girl; while everything else was fuzzy, she was crystal clear.

From the front, I now realized that she had glasses. They framed her face well, making her look smart and sweet. The two girls were chatting freely now, catching each other up on their week's events. The main girl timed every punch line of her story with strategy, causing her friend to laugh hard and often.

I had found my voice now. "Who is she?"

Artemis smiled. "Which one?"

"The one in the blue tank top."

"Are you asking her name or why she's important?"

"Either one. Both I guess."

Aphrodite spoke for the first time. "She is known as Kali Lantrip. Pretty isn't she?"

"Yes. Beautiful, but why are we watching her?"

"Because she is you. You have been given a rare gift. Seeing yourself from someone else's perspective. No nitpicking your insecurities or downplaying your beauty. You see you for you."

Athena gave a sad smile. "I have always wished people could see that without having to look from another point of view. If only they had the confidence to be content with their looks instead of coveting someone else's."

"This is you a week ago," Artemis said, bringing the others back on topic. "we can't restore your memory, but we can give you some things to re-remember."

"Well, why can't you restore my memory? Aren't you supposed to be all-powerful or something?"

"Because we weren't the ones who took your memory away. And only the one who took it can restore it."

"That makes no sense. Who took it? Is it some special power you don't have?"

"No, but we cannot interfere. It is too risky to mess with them."

"Who?"

"We cannot name her, she will sense it."

It didn't make much sense to me. But out of blue, another one of those flashbacks played in my head. It was Dessa warning me after the thunder rumbled "Zeus, Hera, Poseidon... you should be careful with names" The gods knew when you used them. I took a deep breath and blinked to clear the fuzzy ache in my head from the scene.

"Names are powerful," I said without thinking.

"That's right. We cannot afford to use specifics. And we also can't afford to waste time." She nodded at Iris.

On cue, Iris swept her hand through the air, fast-forwarding the movie of my life. "This takes place at the end of summer, three days ago your time."

"Time works differently here?"

"No, time works differently for gods."

This time, she—I—was with someone else. We were in a room that seemed familiar, painted a cheery yellow, with green trim. My eyes fell on the biggest object in the room, an empty but neatly made queen-sized bed. Beside it was a dresser that a lamp with a crusty yellow shade sat on, giving off a warm glow to the room.

I knew this place, and I wanted to be there. Like a moth to a flame, I felt drawn there. Without realizing it, I began walking toward the screen.

Artemis grabbed my arm. "You can't, that's not how this works. It's not some portal you can—"

I released my arm from her grip and continued moving forward. At that moment all I wanted was to be in that room. My face now inches from the screen, I closed my eyes and took another step forward.

I felt that same struggle from underneath the camp-half blood sign. It was like breaking through the surface tension of water. But I was through. I was in the room, the familiar feel of carpet under my feet.

I took a step toward the bed and stopped short. There was a mirror on the dresser, and I was standing in front of it, but I wasn't in the reflection. The closet behind me was—a curtain drawn over it to conceal the contents—but not me.

While I was still puzzling over this, a shiver went through my body. Someone had walked through me. I had walked through me. The same cold sensation went through my body again as a second person walked through me. She was fuzzy, as the other people had been. But I could tell she had long blonde hair and a cool skin tone, though it was sunburnt on her cheeks and forehead.

Iris snapped her fingers behind me and sound came in. The younger girl was talking. "—even a little excited to be a teenager? Just a teeny weeny bit?"

The other me laughed. "Nope, people say being a teenager is the worst."

I smiled, this was my sister, one I had no memories of, not even a name.

"Kady! Kali! Get to bed, it's 11:00!" A voice yelled from across the hall.

"Yes ma'am!" We yelled back in unison, climbing into bed.

"That was your fault, she said your name first." Other me whispered.

"Was not!"

"SHH! She'll kill us if we stay up any later." With that, the other me turned over and twisted the switch on the lamp twice, causing the room to go dark.

Again, Iris swept her hand through the air, swiping forward on some imaginary timeline. The clock's minute hand on the far wall spun in a full circle; it was 11:59.

I waited, this meant something, I knew something was about to happen. I counted to 60. Nothing. The clock switched to midnight on Tuesday, the 18th of August. Still nothing.

I took a step toward my other self. Is there something I'm supposed to—

A flash of white tinged with violet made my hair stand on end. When my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I was gone. Not me. The other me. Like, the one in the bed. You know what I mean.

My sister didn't stir. I turned to look at the door that we had come from earlier. It was open, but as with everything else, it was out of focus. I took a few steps toward it and found that I was walking back into the cabin with the goddesses. Other than Iris, they all looked shocked at what I had done.

I broke through the barrier again. "What was that? What happened to me?"

Iris, being the only one not frozen, was the first to speak. "He will have noticed a power that strong. I have to go, I'll stall for a bit, but the protection will break in three minutes." She gave me an unexpected hug. "Good luck dear, I'll be rooting for you. In secret of course."

I hugged her back. "Αντιο σας. Και σας ευχαριστώ." The sentences were becoming easier now, but they still made my head hurt. And I felt exhausted.

She let go of me, and walked out the door of the cabin, disappearing in a burst of rainbow light. When she left, the portal closed, and the wall was returned to normal.

Aphrodite jumped out of her silent state. "I'll be going too. Good luck." I'm not sure she meant me, she didn't seem the rooting for you type. No, she was the type of person—or god I guess—who was only rooting for you as long as it got them something. I didn't know what she was getting, but I knew Aphrodite was not to be trusted.

She also wasn't polite enough to leave the room before showing her true form. Instinctively I closed my eyes, and in a shower of pink sparks, she was gone too.

I swerved to stare down the two remaining goddesses. "Either of you want to tell me what happened?"

"Ανόητο κορίτσι!" Athena frowned, then composed herself. "We don't have enough time now. You risked us being spotted and now your answers will have to wait. Who knows how long you have delayed them."

I hated that she spoke to me like she was speaking to a young child. I hated that she had called me a fool for reacting the way anyone would have in my shoes. I hated that I was so close to my home, to my family, and couldn't reach them. I hated that I couldn't go back there. I wanted to scream all these things at her, and more. But I couldn't. She was right, I'd already risked enough, I had no one to blame but my stupid self.

As I sat there in stupid silence, Artemis noticed I was upset and glared at Athena. "Since she can understand us in Greek, I'll tell you in English; save her the trouble. That was uncalled for Athena."

She came back to face me. "I'll give you the quick version. The lightning, that was... my father."

"You mean Z—"

"No names! But yes. It was the eve of your thirteenth birthday, once you turned 13 the promise was fulfilled. He couldn't touch you until you were no longer a child. Which gave him 13 years to plan the perfect punishment.

"After he took you, you were missing for over a day. I assume that he hid you and… she did something to wipe your memory. You were dropped off at the border of camp-half blood by two griffins, which you were trying to fend off. But they overpowered you and carried you up the hill. You were out for almost two days this time and woke up here.

"I claimed you because I wanted to help. Already that has cost me dearly, as now he is onto us. The gods are divided right now, and a lot of us—we're on your side. I have done my best to help you thus far, and the others have promised they will do their part as well to help you on your quest."

"If she can make it through without wreaking havoc or killing herself." Commented Athena.

I gulped. "I'm sorry, quest? I don't remember hearing anything about a quest."

Artemis sighed. "No, she's right, how else are you supposed to get your memory back? This quest will help you prove to them that you are worthy of being left alone. That you are not an enemy as they suspect you. If you want your old life back, then you will have to fight for it."

You've got to be kidding me. "Okay. How do I prove to them that I am all that?"

"That, my dear, is entirely up to you."

"As in, I decide?"

Athena laughed. "No, up to you to figure it out on your own."

Artemis winced. "I don't know what will prove it to them, but we're working on it, and we'll help you. Though I doubt we'll ever have another meeting like this.

"I wish I could explain more, but we're running out of time. Good luck Caly, I'm sure you'll make sense of all this in time."

She hugged me tight and whispered. "Sorry for Athena and Aphrodite, they're not sure if they can trust you yet. But I have faith in you."

Five minutes later I was still standing there, struggling to process all the information I had just received.

As if I was in a trance, I walked back to my cabin, still running the whole scene over and over in my head. Every part of me ached, my head most of all. It was like a hammer had gone to town in my temples. I laid in bed with a splitting headache and a mind full of unanswered questions.

What did I do that caused the meeting to end early? What promise? What can I do to prove to them that I'm not an enemy? And the biggest question of all: Why me?

I fell asleep replaying the image of me and my blurry younger sister. I tucked the new memory away, along with her name. Kady. I have a family, and my younger sister's name is Kady.