Thank you all for continuing to enthusiastically support my attempts at fan-fiction! I am deeply grateful for this!
Also, I have discovered as I've written than I never mentioned Lamia's colors. Her snakeskin, in my imagination, looks to be something like a corn snake. (Red-brown spots on brown scales.)
Yet another flaw with my story has now been called to my attention, and I now inform you that Yume's name is pronounced: YOO-meh (with the stress on the first syllable.) I'm so sorry for the confusion, and will try to do better in the future! Thank you all for reading!
"The Titans, often called the Elder Gods, were for untold ages supreme in the universe.
They were of enormous size and of incredible strength.
here were many of them, but only a few appear in the stories of Mythology.
The most important was Cronus, in Latin Saturn." Mythology, Part One - The Gods: The Titans and the Twelve Great Olympians, Edith Hamilton
We climbed on-board the ship, which was called the Princess Andromeda, Yume told me, and were immediately greeted by a cute boy with blond hair and mischievous eyes. I blushed and tried to straighten my sopping wet clothes, but Yume didn't even react to him, yawning and stretching before she spoke and showing no regard for the state of her clothes.
"Hello, Luke," she greeted with a sleepy smile. He returned the expression cheerily, and opened his arms to her.
"Welcome back, Yume!" he said, wrapping her up in a quick hug. "How did the mission go?" Her smile did not falter, and she glanced at me meaningfully. I deeply wished I were already dry, but he didn't seem to notice, holding out his hand to me almost immediately.
"I'm Luke Castellan. It's nice to meet you."
"I'm Kyle Marie Baker." I told him, wanting to make sure he knew I was a girl. I suddenly felt very aware of how little hair I possessed, and I didn't actually have much by way of a figure. His smile almost faltered, but then he smirked.
"Well, Kyle Marie Baker, welcome aboard the Princess Andromeda. I hope you enjoy your stay here, and I'm pleased to inform you that you're completely welcome anywhere onboard, excepting the captain's quarters, and wherever else Yume points out to you. We'll introduce you to our captain tomorrow, so get some sleep, okay?" He was so kind and sincere that I forgot my self-consciousness, and nodded eagerly.
"The captain will tell us whether or not we can help your mom, Kyle." Yume told me over Luke's shoulder. "Now come on. I'll show you to our bunk, and you can hit the hay." I beamed at them, and took Yume's offered hand, following her into the bowels of the smooth-sailing ship with little heed to my own motion sickness.
Unfortunately, after the first flight of stairs, I was feeling the effects of my condition quite a bit, and almost fell over in my nausea.
"Ah, you've got motion sickness, right?" I nodded mutely, trying to resist the urge to throw up.
"I'll go get some medicine for that." And she left me there on the floor by the stairs, where I sat and tried to stay still despite the constant rocking motion. Soon enough, my vision was swimming, and I grabbed onto the railing, trying to keep myself still.
"What'sss thissss?" a voice hissed from above me. Lamia's face appeared in my mind's eye, and I wanted to panic, but I was too scared to move: I might get sick, and then I would have to explain everything to Yume or Luke. Or, worse, Luke might see me do it! I had to stay still, no matter what!
"A Chiiild?" I heard slithering to my right, and dimly noted that a snake woman with the upper-body of a lady loomed over me. "How delicccioussss…" she hissed, her tongue flicking out to lick my shoulder.
"You wear the ssscalesss of Laaamiaaaa…" she sneered, "And yet you are rendered immobile ssso quicklyyy…." I felt her tongue again, and shuddered, afraid.
"Scythia, back off." Yume's voice cut into the snake-lady's hissing fit, and I felt the presence lift off of me, growling deep in her throat like a monster before the slithering left me alone. Then, Yume was there.
"You attract a lot of snakes, you know that?" she said, pulling something out of the box she'd brought.
"These are motion sickness patches. They should keep you from getting too sick." She stuck a couple on me, one behind each ear, and waited for me as I slowly got my bearings back. The feeling of nausea soon subsided, and I let go of the railing, standing slowly just in case the sickness flared up again.
"Who was that?" I asked, and she rolled her eyes.
"Oh, it's Scythia, one of the Scythian dracanae. She just re-spawned, so she's really hungry, and she thinks anything just sitting there must be for her. Our room is this way." And she started walking. I trotted to catch up with her.
"Well, what does she eat?" I asked. She glance back at me, as if she was unsure, but then she decided to answer.
"Human meat." We were silent, after that, and then we were at our room.
"Okay, so it's a little smaller than what you might be used to, but it's comfy. You can just plop down wherever, and get some rest. We'll talk to Kro-the captain tomorrow morning after breakfast. Okay?" She opened the door, and I saw a well-furnished, soft-looking hole that was about Luke's arm-span across and three step to the back. I blushed at the memory of Luke, but felt proud that I hadn't thrown up. I walked in, stepping on piles of blankets and pillows, and Yume stayed in the doorway, leaning against the side.
"Not too shabby, huh?" she affirmed, smirking. I looked at her with bewildered eyes, and smiled.
"It's fantastic! Where did you get all of these things?" She shrugged, and frowned, as if remembering something unpleasant.
"Yeah, well, my dad's Morpheus. One of the three gods of dreams? Yeah, most people don't know, but there are three. Morpheus is the god of the people you see in your dreams. His two brothers, Icelos and Phobetor, monitor the animals and scenery and stuff. They're sons of Hypnos, the god of sleep, and Grandpa likes to dote, so he gives me all of this in hopes that someday I'll sleep away like all the rest of his and Morpheus's kids."
"You call your father by his first name?" Her eyes met mine, and I saw that she was very bitter and angry, like me, with her pagan parent.
"I call my father Dad only when he is present, and only out of respect for his wishes." And she stood up straight. "Goodnight, Kyle. Sleep well." And she closed the door tight.
The next morning, I woke late, and felt a little sick. So, I switched the patches quickly, and then got up, ready to have breakfast. Yume opened the door as I got up, and she held up some clothes.
"For you. Bathroom's down the hall, first door on your left." And she smiled mockingly. "Get out of that stupid orange. It looks obnoxious." I looked down at the glaring color, but I hadn't really minded it. The orange reminded me of the pictures of hunters my mom showed me. She said they always wore orange because the animals couldn't see it but the people could. I smiled, anyway.
"Yeah, I guess it does look silly," and I took the clothes from her. She closed the door, and I changed into the brown pants and dark red shirt. It matched the brown snakeskin perfectly, and I wondered what I looked like. So, I headed down the hall, as Yume had directed, and walked in, finding a mirror that showed my profile.
I looked like a different person than the one who left my house only nine days ago. Or was it ten? The memory just seemed so distant. It was hard to remember. But now, I had a little bit of stubble on my head. My hair was beginning to grow in to be fair, and I put the red-brown snakeskin over it like a bandana, making my eyes seem greener next to it. My skin was a little more tanned because I'd never slept outside before, and my face was a little thinner. I had only eaten well the last few days. Before that, I had looked well-fed no matter what had happened, since my mom had always managed to make things filling and lasting.
Still, I looked good. Better than I ever remembered looking. I scolded myself for my vanity. Looks don't matter in the eyes of the Lord, Kyle. I reminded myself, nodding to my reflection and then turning to the toilet to finish up.
When I came out, Yume was waiting for me, almost napping.
"Took you long enough. I was worried you'd gone Narcissus in there or something." I looked at her, confused, and she shook her head. "Never mind. Let's go meet breakfast, and then I'll introduce you to our leader." I smiled at the idea, and followed her happily to the Cafeteria.
There were so many monsters when we first arrived that I stopped in the doorway, frightened. Had we been led into a trap? Had I been led into a trap? Yume had seemed human. Had she fooled me? Had she been plotting with Lamia this whole time? Had she-
"It's okay, Kyle. They're on our side. Don't be nervous." She took my hand, and I followed her, watching the bronze-and-goat-legged women, the women who looked like Scythia, and the big Cyclopes and other monsters. One of the snake-women hissed in my general direction, and I figured that must have been Scythia. The other women around her, with their trays of well-done and raw steaks, flicked their forked tongues at me, as well, giving me the impression that none of them liked me.
Yume led me to the breakfast line, and told me what to do, since I had never been to a cafeteria before. I followed her down the line, too, grabbing eggs and bacon and sausage, all of which were precious in my home.
Of course, the thought of home reminded me of my purpose, and I did my best to finish my food quickly. Yume didn't eat much, herself, grabbing only some yogurt and cereal, and finished only a minute before I did. Naturally, when I did finish, I felt a chill crawl up my spine, and turned to find one of the snake-women behind me.
"You wear the skinnn of Laamiaaa," she observed, and I felt the hair on my arms stand on end. Her yellow eyes bore into my own, and I was suddenly very reminded of my first human-like monster. The heavily-accented drawl came back to me, and the way her eyes seemed to radiate hatred, as this woman's did, made me shudder.
"You do not know how important she wasss to ussss." she hissed, rising up on her serpentine legs. "She wasss to be our captaaaain, and you wear her ssssskinnn assss if it were a prizzzzzzzze." She bared her fangs at me, but then a kama was at her neck.
"Back down, Airlea." Yume whispered, blinking sleepily. "I just woke up eleven hours ago and am in no mood to deal with your antics. Kyle is with me. You can tell your sisters and mother that, too." The snake woman's mouth widened in offense, but she backed up, returning to her table, where at least ten pairs of angry yellow eyes glared daggers at us. I shuddered, and grabbed Yume's offered hand.
"Come on. We'll go see the leader, now."
Before we opened the door to where he was, she turned to me, straightening my bandana and shirt, and making sure my face was clean.
"Goodness, Yume, you're acting like my mom." I laughed, but she didn't crack a smile.
"I'm going to try to get him to let you work with me. I think you would help me a lot in my work." she said, and I sobered. If this was important to Yume, then I would follow. Finally, she was satisfied, and took a deep breath, as if she should be the one nervous. "Okay. Let's go."
She opened the doors, and I tried not to blush when I saw Luke, who smiled at us.
"Excellent. You're here! Perfect timing!" He hugged Yume first, and then hugged me, and I blushed a deep red. Then, he turned, putting a hand between my shoulder blades and guiding me to the sarcophagus in the center of the room. "My lord, allow me to introduce Kyle Marie Baker, daughter of- ah-"
He waited for me to fill in the blank, and I shrugged. I had never heard his name.
"Apollo," A deep whisper that resounded in the room filled me with dread. Was that the voice of their captain? "She is the daughter of Apollo, Lord and God of the Plague." I reached for Luke, grasping his shirt, and the voice laughed, a scratchy, evil laugh. Was this what my mom had meant by 'the voice of the devil'?
"My lord, it is as you say. She is interested in finding her rightful place in the world, and wants to save her mother, who was sickened due to the curse of her Olympian father." Luke explained shortly.
"Yes. Tell us your story, Kyle Baker." I gulped, and told them about my adventures since leaving home. Eventually, the presence of the voice in the room became less threatening, so I started talking more freely, telling them everything I'd felt, said, thought, or even prayed since I'd left home. All three of them were quiet, listening.
"…and then we ended up here." I finished, blushing as I realized how long I'd been talking.
"Yes. I understand, Kyle. We will see about your mother, but in exchange, you must understand that I need something from you." I nodded, but then wondered if he could see me.
"Yes, I understand." I answered aloud.
"Your hands could be useful in neutralizing my enemies. Will you work off your debt to me for saving your mother's life by working together with Yume?" I thought about it. The deal didn't seem so bad. I could save my mom, stay with Yume, and be useful. What's wrong with that?
"Sure. That sounds like a good idea to me." Little did I know that I had just sealed my fate.