ROYAL CRIES
━━ prologue

━━ FOR WHAT SHE was given in life, things could be going a lot worse for Elisa. Granted, she never felt like a normal kid and was never treated as such. There was always that fear, dyslexia, and ADHD that only singled her out in school, making her a target for her peers and teachers.

There were always odd things that would happen around Elisa. Once, when she went to the zoo with her mamá, it was like a whole group of people started whispering to her, telling her things, telling her to do things ( most of it being bad things, telling her to run away, to start a fight, to cause a scene right there in the zoo, just nothing good ). When Elisa asked her mother about it, Liliana couldn't hear a thing that Elisa was hearing.

Liliana may have heard nothing because she was hungover. She was a partier, to put it simply. She partied a lot, often neglecting Elisa, even being so drunk she forgot she ever had a kid at times.

Elisa had done without in a lot of situations, lack of love from her mother, no father at all. Liliana and Elisa didn't live any sort of grand lifestyle at all.

But Elisa had a mother, and that's what mattered, even if calling Liliana a mother was being generous. Nevertheless, that's what she always told herself. Many kids didn't have that, and they didn't have a dad like her either, and they could be taking care of their siblings all on their own. Their situations could be—and many were—way worse. Elisa had a roof over her head, had clothes to wear, and was fed ( although, sometimes that wasn't always the case ).

Safe to say, Elisa could be in a lot worse of a situation than she was already in, living in Durango, Colorado. That still doesn't diminish all the horrible shit she went through, though. Being your classmates ( and your extended families ) punching bag does not have any perks.

Still, it was always the same cycle with Liliana; she would party, bouncing from party to party, never once thinking about the kid she had at home. And then, Liliana would get in trouble with the law. Elisa had been taken away multiple times because her mother had put her in so much hazard. Elisa wouldn't get to live with her mother again for a few months every time. Although wherever Elisa was put in those months may have looked nicer, they were somehow worse than living with her drunk mother.

After getting in trouble with the law, Liliana would start to clean up her act, but she would relapse eventually. Liliana always did, and then the cycle continue. It was like that all of Elisa's life, it was all she ever knew. All she ever knew was the house reeking of booze, and even marijuana at times. And her classmates only made it worse. Their parents would talk about Liliana in front of their kids, not even bothering to hide their disdain for the woman. They would talk about how Liliana put up a front in the public eye that she was this great mother, but would then leave her kid alone at the house upon hours, sometimes even days.

They were right, of course, but that was still Elisa's family they were talking about: Liliana was all she had.

Granted, Liliana never came home drunk. Hungover? All the time, but never drunk. And she never brought strange men home either. She was an alcoholic, sure, but she never endangered her daughter like that. But, then again, being an alcoholic is dangerous all on its own, and having a kid on top of that is even worse.

Liliana didn't exactly want Elisa either, but her parents refused to let her get an abortion or to let her put Elisa up for adoption. ( Even though Elisa did end up in foster homes from time to time. ) But Liliana's parents refused to help raise Elisa, they said it was punishment for having a kid out of wedlock. They never once considered how it would also be a punishment for the kid, as well.

But, ignoring all of the bad—which Elisa did often, it was easier that way—she was practically allowed to do whatever she wanted. Her mother was never home and she had no father to correct her. But that also meant Elisa had no guidance. No one was there to help her when she fell, or when she felt like she was lost in the world. She had no one to lead her down the right path. None of her teachers ever bothered trying, either, they all thought she would end up like her mother.

And maybe they were right. After all, being able to escape the miserable life you live seems much more appealing than trying to fix the miserable life you live in.

ˋˏ [ 👑 ] ˎˊ

Elisa and Silas were walking down a street, having just left the gymnasium of their school. The two thought they at least ought to go to at least one game of the season. ( Both knew their high school basketball team was not good enough to beat the opposing team—and they were right. In this game, their school lost by a landslide. If Elisa cared any about the sport or her future high school, she would have been embarrassed. )

"Elisa, hurry up!" Silas called back to her, already fifteen feet ahead of her.

The girl rolled her eyes, kicking a lone rock on the road. "Why didn't we take the bus?" she said.

"We're flat broke."

Elisa scoffed, "Speak for yourself. I'll have you know, I've saved up a bunch of money!"

Silas grinned back at her, his curly blond hair pulled back by a cap. His brown eyes shined brightly in the street lights. "Really?" he teased her. "How much? Five dollars?"

"Twenty, actually. It's all in pennies, though."

Silas turned back around, laughing with his head tilted back. Soon, his blue cap fell off, falling to the ground with a dull thump! He whirled around, picking up the hat, which he quickly shoved back on his head. Elisa grinned and hurried to catch up with him.

"Good job." She snickered to herself.

Silas knocked his shoulder into hers, sending her stumbling to her left.

"About that twenty in pennies," he said. "Think you could buy me some ice cream?"

He pointed down the street, where the city's Sonic was built, although its sign flickering it was open. Elisa looked at it, looking at all the cars parked around the building. All the cars had to be from the football game that just ended twenty minutes ago.

"I am not paying for ice cream in pennies! Besides, I left all my money at home. And it's cold!"

"You do this every time," Silas whined. "You always say you left your money at home! You just want me to pay for everything!"

"Guilty." Elisa grinned, shrugging.

"I'm gonna get you to buy something for me before my birthday," Silas vowed. "Don't know what it'll be, but it'll be something."

"Why are you threatening me?" Elisa said. "And you act like I'm not gonna buy you a birthday present, anyway."

"What is it, then?" Silas asked.

"I don't know yet. It's, like, early December, I have some time," Elisa said. "But we won't be able to do much since your birthday's in January."

"My birthday is January 9th," Silas pointed out. "You have, like, a month. No, wait, exactly a month."

"That's enough time!" Elisa insisted.

"Maybe if it snows around my birthday, we could just have a fun day of playing outside," said Silas.

"Thought you hate the cold?"

"I do." Silas nodded. "But if we can't do anything else because we're snowed in—"

"If we're snowed in that means we won't be able to see each other. We'll be snowed in, in our own houses."

Silas scoffed, a puff of white smoke appearing in front of his face. "Oh, forget it! We'll think of something."

Soon enough, the two were passing by Sonic.

"Hey," Silas said, "seriously, I can pay for the ice cream if you want some."

Elisa cast a look at the sky, which was growing darker as time passed on. "Let's just get home. I want to get home before it's dark."

The two hurried down Durango's streets, it was a charming town, and Elisa never denied that. But it was all she's known, and Durango was no New York City, it was no San Francisco, it was no Los Angeles. Once you did everything offered in Durango, you did everything offered in Durango. There was never anything new around, never anyone new. Silas was actually the second new student Elisa ever had in all her years in school.

In Durango, Colorado, everyone knows everyone, which isn't a bad thing if you weren't Elisa or Liliana. The whole town knew about the strange things that happened to Elisa Bardales, knew all about Liliana and her addictions. The whole town knew every single problem in the family, which meant no one and their kids wanted to be around them.

Elisa didn't mind, most of them were assholes anyway.

She and Silas hurried inside the apartment building and pressed the call button to the elevator.

"Your mom's home, right?" Silas asked Elisa. "I don't want to just walk in if—"

"Mamá's not home," Elisa answered, keeping her answer short.

"Right," Silas muttered and nodded as the elevator dinged, and the metal doors pulled apart. The two got inside and waited for the doors to close. Elisa pressed the third-floor button, the top floor, and they were off.

The two set off down the hallway, and stopped at the second to last door on the floor, 309. Elisa unlocked the door and opened it with a flourish.

Elisa kicked off her shoes, and sat down on an old seat, dropping her school bag to the ground. Silas came in much quieter, he didn't take off his shoes, nor his hat. Elisa had tried many times but he just never gave in, so she left it be. Elisa turned on the TV as Silas sat down. And they stayed like that for some time, watching, laughing, and talking about whatever was on the TV. It was Friday night, Silas and Elisa didn't have school the next day, and Liliana probably wouldn't be home for many hours.

It was nice, but with Elisa's track record, it wouldn't last long.

And she was already trying the get over the pain of when Silas inevitably left her and the friendship for someone else.

ˋˏ [ 👑 ] ˎˊ

Elisa sat beside Silas in English class, dropping her bag on the school floor. It was Monday, the weekend had passed, and a new student had moved in. She was a pretty girl with dark skin and dark braids that fell down her back, and Elisa was pretty sure she didn't see any acne. Lucky for her since Elisa's acne is terrible.

The girl, Gabrielle Barnett, stood in front of the class, a smile showing off her pearly white teeth, which looked perfect. Damn. She hit the jackpot of genes, didn't she? Silas shifted uncomfortably next to Elisa.

He leaned over and whispered in her ear, "Something's off about her."

Elisa took a closer look at the girl. She was pretty but she didn't seem dangerous.

"What? What are you talking about?" she asked.

The blond shook his head. "Something's off. I don't know what, but something."

The two leaned away from each other when Mrs. Lee's eyes locked on their table. Mrs. Lee watched them for a few more seconds before her eyes moved back over to Gabrielle.

The new student stood in front of the class, her eyes roaming over who would be her new classmates. Her eyes locked on Elisa and Silas' table, her eyes flickering over Elisa's face. She sent Elisa a kind smile before looking back at Mrs. Lee.

"This is Miss Gabrielle Barnett, she's the new student. Please welcome her with open arms," Mrs. Lee said, walking to the front of the classroom to stand next to Gabrielle. "Please sit next to Miss Bardales, Miss Barnett. Elisa, raise your hand."

Elisa slowly raised her hand into the air, locking eyes with Gabrielle once again. Gabrielle shuffled over to Elisa and Silas's table, softly putting her bag on the floor.

"Elisa, right?" Gabrielle asked, looking at Elisa, and Elisa nodded. Then Gabrielle looked at Silas.

"Uh ... Silas," he gave hesitantly.

Gabrielle smiled. "Sweet. Name is Gabrielle, from New Orleans."

"New Orleans?" Elisa repeated. "What are you doing here in Colorado?"

Gabrielle smiled, sitting down at the four-person table, leaving only one seat open. "Mom. A job came up that she couldn't refuse."

Mrs. Lee cleared her throat, turning the whiteboard on. "I have graded that last essay over the Outsiders, and comparing them from your last essay, many were a lot better."

Elisa got the hint that the compliment wasn't meant for her. With her ADHD and dyslexia, school never came easy, it was quite literally hell for her. And Mrs. Lee knew Elisa suffered from ADHD and dyslexia, but she never did a thing to help Elisa learn better. But then again, none of Elisa's teachers ever did a thing to make school easier for her.

Mrs. Lee went on, "But we need to work on your grammar. It is not where it needs to be for seventh graders." Her voice went quieter as she went on to say, "I'm not sure your teachers ever taught you any sort of grammar.

She grabbed a stack of papers off her desk. She started handing them out, separating four papers and dropping them off at each table. "Read the instructions. Complete the worksheet correctly. Turn them into me when you complete it."

She reached Elisa's table, separated three papers, and dropped them on Silas' desk. She went to her desk and crossed her arms as she watched the class like a hawk.

Elisa grabbed a paper off Silas's desk, pulling a pencil out.

"I'm dyslexic, just so you know," Elisa warned Gabrielle.

The new girl smiled. "Me too," she said.

Silas looked at Elisa. "Really?" he asked, and Gabrielle nodded.

Elisa pointed her pencil at Gabrielle's face, waving it with every word she said. "Just so you know, the teachers do not care and will never help you in any way."

Gabrielle frowned. "That's not fair at all," she said.

Elisa shrugged. "They don't really care. Mrs. Lee's the worst, too. I swear she hates me because I'm dyslexic, not because I never complete my work."

Mrs. Lee cleared her throat loudly. The three looked over at her slowly. Silas smiled at her and hurried to get Gabrielle and Elisa started.

"Let's just get this completed," he said, turning Elisa around. "Quicker we get this done, the quicker we can be done with her."

Thirty minutes later, they were on the last question. And for two dyslexic kids, one of them with ADHD, and the third trying to keep them all on task, was good for them.

Gabrielle had to be the quickest person Elisa's ever got along with. Even faster than Silas, maybe that was because when Silas first started talking to Elisa, she wanted nothing to do with anyone at the school. She just wanted to get in and get out, but Silas didn't seem to care. Elisa guessed Silas broke down her walls enough that not only him could get past them.

Since their middle school was so small, Gabrielle had every class with Elisa and Silas. Silas seemed hesitant to talk to Gabrielle so much, but he would give her kind smiles, just being friendly, as friendly as he could be when she just felt off.

Elisa told him his senses were messed up from the cold. Silas knew himself well enough to know that wasn't the case. The cold doesn't make Gabrielle Barnett look as if her skin was constantly rippling, like it was trying to contain something inside. Elisa told him he was imagining it, that Gabrielle's braids didn't look as if they want to light on fire whenever she got close to a lamp on a teacher's desk.

Silas was pretty sure he was connecting the dots. He may be blond, but he's not dumb, okay? That spot was reserved for Elisa, who refused to listen to any sort of warning he made about Gabrielle Barnett. In Silas's opinion, that was really fucking stupid of Elisa.

But Gabrielle fit with the two as if she had always been there like she hadn't moved in that Monday. Elisa was ecstatic to have a friend that wasn't a guy or to just have another friend at all.

The three sat in ancient history together, Mr. Foster was walking around the class. "Can someone tell what peninsula is?"

He stopped in front of the class as he waited for someone to answer him. "No?" He waited a few more seconds. "Elisa, do you know what a peninsula is?"

Elisa, who was twirling a pencil through her fingers, paused. "Uh ... isn't it, like, a place that is surrounded by water?"

"Close." Mr. Foster nodded. "It is a piece of land surrounded by water on three sides. This ties us into today's lesson, Ancient Greece. Greece is a peninsula, but Greece wasn't a country at the time. Ancient Greece was divided up into cities that governed themselves, like Athens or Sparta."

"But Ancient Greece, and I'm sure you've all heard about at least one of their gods, is incredibly famous for their worship of their gods. The people were polytheistic, which is the belief in multiple gods, like Zeus, the King of the Gods, or Hera, his wife, the Goddess of Childbirth and Marriage, or Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love."

"The people of Ancient Greece used these gods as a way to explain something they couldn't. Zeus is the God of Lightning and storms, or Hephaestus, the God of Fire. Now, if you believe in this, is up to you, or if you believe in a singular god, like Christianity's God, is up to you. Greek Mythology was a belief, a way to explain things the people of the time couldn't begin to explain. But we are talking about this to learn how this belief in many gods developed their culture, and their way of living. Pull out your notebooks and take notes while I talk."

ˋˏ [ 👑 ] ˎˊ

"You can't be serious," Silas complained. "He's totally wrong about Pan's father! His father isn't Apollo, it's Hermes!"

"Really? Some people believe Pan's father is Apollo?" said Gabrielle. "I've always heard Pan's father was Hermes, I've never heard of his father being Apollo."

Elisa was confused. She never studied Greek Mythology a day in her life, and just being thrown into it in a history lesson was not easy. Because who the hell was Athena? Or Dionysus, or Demeter, or Persephone? Besides, what were those names? Like, Elisa knew the name Elisabet wasn't that common but it's not Persephone. Elisa's name looked how it was pronounced, Persephone doesn't. How would you even try and pronounce that?

"I've always been interested in Greek Mythology," Gabrielle said. "I don't know, but there's just something really interesting about it. I've read a lot and a lot of books about it."

It was a pretty nice week, for Elisa at least. Silas kept complaining about how wrong Mr. Foster was about Greek Mythology. ( Elisa still didn't understand a single thing Mr. Foster said, but when did she anyway? )

For Elisa, compared to how previous school years have gone, she was having a phenomenal week, which was strange. And it almost made her on edge, it would have if she wasn't enjoying the school week so much.

It was Friday, the end of the school week. Gabrielle had been there for five days, and she had yet to ditch Silas and Elisa for anyone else. And if Elisa was honest, she expected it by Tuesday for Gabrielle to ditch them.

But instead of heading home by walking, since Elisa got written up for fighting a kid on the bus a few weeks ago, she and Silas stayed after to help Gabrielle catch up in math. Which was not Elisa's best subject, nor was it Silas's, but they thought since Gabrielle had been so nice to them for the week, they thought they'd at least be decent people.

"What the hell are proportional relationships?" Elisa asked loudly. The seventh-grade math teacher, Mrs. Smart—who acted like a real smartass to Elisa—gave her a stern look.

Gabrielle covered a grin as she erased her wrong answer.

"How do you not know what this is?" Silas demanded. "We talked about it all week!"

"Silas," Elisa said with seriousness, "I sleep in math."

"Which is why you're failing," he pointed out.

"Actually, I'm not failing, I have a 68—which you can round up! That would make it a 70. And we learned that—" Elisa paused. "I don't know actually," she admitted.

"You learned about rounding numbers in fourth grade," Mrs. Smart pointed out.

"Elisa was probably eating glue," Silas muttered.

"I didn't eat glue, I ate paper."

Silas rolled his eyes, shook his head, and turned to Gabrielle. He pulled out his notebook and started flipping through the used papers. Elisa got a glimpse of some of the paper and nearly cringed when she saw all the notes written, and all the formulas, and numbers. God, she hates math.

"We will actually look at geometry soon," Mrs. Smart informed the students that stayed after for extra help.

Elisa looked at her teacher in horror. Silas snickered and said, "Say goodbye to that 67!"

"It's a 68," she corrected, laying her head on the desk in defeat.

"Mrs. Smart," Gabrielle said, "how do you solve proportional relationships?" she asked.

"Here," Mrs. Smart stood up, "let me help. And Elisa, pay attention this time."

ˋˏ [ 👑 ] ˎˊ

"And Elisa," Silas repeated, raising his voice to imitate Mrs. Smart, "pay attention this time."

He and Gabrielle laughed in unison as Elisa scowled.

"It's not my fault she's a smartass and I'm not good at math!" she yelled, her voice echoing down the street.

The blond shook his head, turning around the walk backward on the sidewalk. "It certainly doesn't help that you sleep in her class."

"I hope you trip on something and fall face-first into the concrete," Elisa snapped.

Silas snickered and hurried down the sidewalk. Gabrielle wandered behind Silas and Elisa, looking down at the ground.

"Hey," she called to them. "Can you two help me find Holiday Inn? It's where me and my mom are staying until she can find somewhere permanent to stay."

"Sure." Elisa shrugged. "It's close to my mom and my apartment. Only, like, a few streets down."

They walked the way to Holiday Inn, talking about when the basketball season would start. Elisa commented that their girls' basketball team was leaps and bounds better than the boys' team. And she was right! But the school poured all their money into the boys' team, even Elisa was salty about it, and she couldn't play basketball even if her life depended on it.

"Here it is!" Elisa announced. "See you Monday, Gabrielle!"

She turned, ready to walk to her place with Silas, when Gabrielle called out, "You should come and meet my mom! I've told her about you two. She's happy I made friends with people so nice."

Silas gave Gabrielle a painfully fake smile. "Tell her it's nothing, but we should really go see Elisa's mom. She's sick; Bronchitis you know, that's a battle to beat."

His hand landed on Elisa's shoulder, pushing her farther away from Gabrielle. Elisa opened her mouth to ask what Silas' problem was when their figures were illuminated on the sidewalk in bright orange. Silas said something in a language Elisa had never heard before and pushed her head down. A ball of fire sailed over their head and hit a building at the end of the street. The building had a gaping hole in its shop display, and a fire started to build around the store.

"Move!" Silas yelled to Elisa, pulling her off the ground.

"You should really come and meet my mom, Elisa," Gabrielle insisted. "She wants to get to know you! She knows your father very well!"

Elisa glanced back; Gabrielle's hair was columns of pure fire instead of dark braids, and her skin was still dark, but with this unearthly golden, dangerous glow to her skin. Her eyes were bright, glowing red. And when Gabrielle smiled, it wasn't sweet like it used to be; she had fangs. One of the girl's legs was a prosthetic bronze leg, and the other was a donkey leg, wings sprouted out of her back.

"Elisa, move!" Silas yelled again.

The two ran down the street, dodging and weaving through bursts of fire aimed at them. Every once in a while, instead of fire, it'd be some spell. And whenever Gabrielle—if that was still Gabrielle—would start talking, Silas would yell over her, yelling to tell Elisa to ignore everything she'd said.

"What is she?" Elisa demanded, halfway to her apartment.

"She's an empousa!" Silas told her. "Well—well, she's a daughter of Hecate!"

Elisa nearly tripped over her own foot hearing that. "What the hell is that? And who the hell is Hecate?" she demanded.

"It's a monster, Elisa, from Greek Mythology. It's all real! Everything Mr. Foster said—mostly, at least. And Hecate is a Titan! Titan of magic and necromancy!"

"What the hell does an empo—empo—whatever-the-fuck-they're-called do!" Elisa yelled.

"Monsters! Empousa! They kill half-bloods!" Silas clarified for her.

"Kill half-bloods—? Just how do we get rid of her?" Elisa yelled, ducking under a spell lodged her way.

"A weapon! Celestial bronze weapon! Or magic!" Silas gasped. He pulled out pair of reed pipes she didn't even know he had. Silas brought them to his lips and started playing something Elisa's never heard before. It sounded like a folk song, not something Elisa would hear much considering all her mother listened to was 80s pop and rock music.

"What are you doing?" she demanded.

Silas didn't stop playing his music to answer her. They kept running, and Silas kept playing as they turned a corner. Silas took the reed pipes away from his lips, yelling, "Duck!"

He and Elisa ducked as huge, tentacle-like, green vines busted through a window beside them. They had just passed by a flower shop, full of camellias and crocus. Pink buds were on the end of the vine tentacle. They ran out of the way as it circled Gabrielle. She would fire spells and fire itself to try and get rid of the plant, but every attack she made only seemed to make it come ten times worse.

Silas and Elisa watched in horror as Gabrielle screamed curses at them as the plant slowly consumed her from foot to head. Soon, it covered the last of her face, her screams still able to be heard out of the plant. The mound shook and writhed as she tried to escape, then her voice faded, and the pink buds bloomed like they had used Gabrielle's life to make their own.

Silas grabbed Elisa by the upper arm. "Let's go," he said, his voice wavering. Even he seemed shocked at what had just happened.

But Elisa's apartment was up in flames. Fire danced out of every window, setting the ground alight in an orange glow. The sky was covered in black, billowing smoke. People were running out of the building, coughing, holding onto whatever they could salvage.

Elisa skidded to a stop on the concrete. She heard Silas let out a loud gasp. She watched the fire in horror, she could already feel the heat 40, maybe 50, feet away. Her eyes were glued to her bedroom window, flames were dancing out of that window.

"Mamá is in there!" she yelled, ready to take a break toward the entrance. Maybe Elisa's mother wasn't the mother of the year, but that's still her mother.

Silas grabbed her before she could even take a step. "Elisa, no! Your mom might already be out here!"

Elisa looked through the crowd wildly. Mr. Oritz, a thin man that lived next to her, had his arm wrapped around his son and wife.

"Mr. Ortiz!" Elisa yelled. "Have you seen Mamá?"

The father looked down at her sadly. "Elisa—your mamá, she couldn't—the door was jammed—I tried to help her—"

It felt like the cold winter air was getting to her, even getting past the growing fire. She turned to look back at the building. Sirens wailed in the background, louder than all the panicked people outside. Elisa took hurried steps for the entrance, Silas yelling after her, and she got close to the building, feeling the dancing flames even more.

But a figure made her pause. A hopeful spark ignited in her chest, but the figure ... it was too tall to be her mamá and the person's legs ...

A woman with pale skin, red eyes, a mechanic leg, and a goat leg stepped out of the fire. She grinned, sending shivers down Elisa's spine.

"Elisabet ..." she said, her grin getting wider. "You and goat boy may have been able to destroy Gabrielle ... but she was never that strong. She's the weakest of me and my sisters."

She and Gabrielle didn't look related. This lady had pale skin and a narrow face, while Gabrielle had dark skin and chubby features. Her hair was still columns of fire, however, with glowing red eyes.

She raised her hand, green smoke billowing from her fingertips. She pushed her hand out, and instead of hitting Elisa, the spell sailed past her and covered the crowd of people behind her. The crowd dropped to the floor, looking as if they all just decided to take a nap on the cold ground. Silas stood in front of them, his reed pipes in his hand, his grey cap nowhere to be seen. A pair of horns stood out of his blond hair.

"Elisabet ... it's a miracle you've survived this long without an attack," the empousa said. "We'll have to change that."

Elisa swallowed the bile in her throat. "What?" Her voice was hoarse. "What the hell—?"

"I'm not even sure your mother knows what you really are," the empousa interrupted her. "And neither do you. Blondie never told you, correct?"

Elisa glanced back at Silas, he looked at the empousa with wide eyes. He raised his reed pipes to his lips, but she cut him off with another spell.

"Don't even bother, blondie."

The spell hit Silas straight in the chest, and he fell back and hit the ground with a thud.

The empousa pointed a thin finger at Elisa. "And don't you move, half-blood."

"What did you do to him?" Elisa demanded.

The empousa waved her hands. "It was nothing. He'll be fine, well, as long as you listen to me."

"What do you want?"

"For you to join mother and me. To join Kronos. You're powerful, Elisabet, you just need the proper training."

"You're crazy," Elisa decided. "You're crazy to think that I would join you after—" She was struggling to decide what to say next, what the empousa did to the innocent people in the apartment complex and what the monster just did to Silas.

The empousa shook her head. "Not so. I'll make you a deal: come with me, join Kronos, train, and I'll let your goat boy live."

Elisa looked desperately at the burning building behind the empousa. "What about Mamá?"

"Oh ..." The monster gave Elisa a fake look of sympathy. "She can't be a part of the deal anymore. She's dead. She wouldn't tell me where you were, and that's the only use I would have for her. She had to go."

The burning building ignited another flame. The first flame—the flame of hope—dying out with a sharp hiss. The concrete below them shook, and vines broke through the sidewalk, circling around the empousa's legs.

"Impressive," the monster admitted with an eye roll. "But you need better control of your powers, half-blood, 'cause I know you didn't mean to do that. Now, if you would—"

"I'm not going anywhere with you!" Elisa spat. "You killed my mother! You're threatening to kill Silas, and you're threatening me! You expect me to just go with you?"

The empousa rolled her eyes. "I wasn't threatening to kill the goat boy. But since you even brought it up, yes, I will kill him if you don't listen to me."

The vines started creeping up her body. The empousa started looking around, her eyes filling with hatred instead of amusement.

"Now, Elisabet," she said in the most soothing voice she could, "come with me, I'll let Silas go, I'll let the mortals go. If you don't ... it'll be a manhunt for you. People will believe you burned down this building, and even killed your own mother in the process. Killed your classmate, Gabrielle Barnett, before burning the building, and are a dangerous person. One who should be thrown in jail. Do you want to be on the run for the rest of your life?"

Elisa's hands twitched at her side. She didn't know how the hell she was controlling the vines, she didn't know how they even came to be, they were standing in the middle of the concrete. She didn't know what the hell an empousa was, what they wanted from her, or what the hell this one was talking about.

The empousa's smile fell, her eyes squinted, and her hands turned an icy blue. A cool blast of a spell was aimed at Elisa's face. She ducked and the spell sailed past her and to Elisa's neighbors.

The empousa's face was set in a hard glare. "Fine," she spat. "Since you won't listen to me, I'll ruin everything for you."

She clawed through the vines like they were nothing. She stepped out of the shredded vines, stalking for Elisa. The girl watched in fear, watching to see what she would do next. The empousa shot her hand out, a blast of red shot from her fingertips, sailing past Elisa's head. She whirled around to watch where the spell would land.

The spell raced for the crowd. The crowd lay frozen, Silas lay in the front. The spell encased the crowd—

"One wrong move," the empousa warned. "One wrong move, and I won't hesitate to kill them all."

Elisa swallowed heavily. "I'll do whatever."

The monster grinned. "That's more like it. You will come with me, you will join Kronos, and you will train, train to defeat the Olympians."

"Who's Kronos?" Elisa interrupted. "And what the hell are you talking about?"

"I'll explain everything. And once you hear about the Olympians' wrong-doings, you'll agree that they need to be taken down."

"You really are crazy."

The empousa tutted. "That's not something to call your soon-to-be ally."

"Just let them go!" Elisa pointed to the crowd behind her.

"In a minute!" the monster snapped. "I have to make sure you're not lying."

The monster stalked closer to her. She grabbed Elisa by the jaw, squinting. "I—"

Elisa took her chance. She had gotten into plenty of fights before, but none of them had been with a crazy lady that could perform magic, but she had to take her chance. Elisa punched the empousa in the face, directly in the nose.

Elisa her a CRUNCH! as her fist made contact with the monster's nose. The empousa jerked its head back, letting go of Elisa's face.

"You—" the monster spat. She threw her hand out, Elisa half-expected the monster to smack her, but she heard a cracking sound behind her. The empousa grinned at Elisa as something that looked the color of gold started to trickle down from her nose.

"You didn't heed my warning, half-blood," the monster said. "But I still kept my end of the deal up. And I won't let you off easy—"

The monster disappeared into thin air. Elisa turned around in horror, her old neighbors, their kids, her friend—

They were all just ash.

Elisa did what she knew best: She turned on her heels and started to run. After all, escaping your miserable life was much easier than trying to fight it or fix it. But this one, Elisa couldn't even fix if she wanted to, or if she knew how to, she couldn't bring back the dead.

The dead always stays dead. She knew that pretty well now.

👑  DEC. 19TH, 2021  /  super traumatized <33 but that builds character i guess