Treasure of Calliope: Chronicles of Zeus' Daughters - Book 1

Chapter 7: Introductions

Kyra woke up feeling better than she had in a while. The sun was setting, and her stomach started to growl.  She got up, showered and put on her favorite pair of jeans and another long-sleeved shirt. That was when she noticed that she felt different, it was a good different she thought but couldn’t quite put her finger on what it was.

“There is nothing we can’t do together,” she said to herself because there was no one else in her room.

“You are not alone. Even when you see no one else”, said a woman’s voice from inside her head. She sounded older and something about it was almost reassuring.

“Are you real or is this just my imagination?”

“We are as real as that bracelet we made for you.”

“Can you answer my questions about what danger is coming for my family?”

“There are some things you must learn along your journey to become who you are meant to be.”

“You can trust Atlas. His life is tied to yours,” said another older female voice.”

“He says he wants to protect me and my family, but I can’t see how he can do that if I am on the only one who can see him.” Kyra stopped for a minute before for asked her next question. “What needs to be done to bring him to my world?”

“You already have the power to travel between realms. Soon, you will have the power to move others with you. For now, be patient,” said a third woman’s voice.”

“Ok. Last question for now,” Kyra started to say and could hear all three-woman laughing at her. “Fine, two more questions.”

“Go ahead child, ask.”

“Why was I chosen? Atlas said that you gave him this bracelet before I was even born. And if I remember my Greek mythology reading, it was when the human world was still very young.”

“You know who we are, so you know that we see past, present and future. When most do not realize is that the future we see has multiple paths. Using what we know, we try to influence the best possible future.”

“Ego and greed prevent that from happening. But you are different. You are not influenced by either of those.”

“You have a strong sense of loyalty, duty and love of family which makes you and Atlas a very good match.”

“Sister. Too much information!”

“You have to be blind or without a brain to not see that.”

“And she is very intelligent.”

“I’m still here,” Kyra reminded them.

“Ah yes. Kyra. You are unique and some fear who you are destined to become.”

“But what they do not know is that your sisters, cousins, mother, aunt and grandmother are also unique.”

“We wish we could tell you more. You have a long journey ahead of you and most of what we just told you must not be shared.”

“I cannot tell anyone?”

“You may share this with Atlas.”

“Listen to what he has to say Kyra.  You will want to follow your emotions, but he will help you follow your instincts.”

“Thank you,” Kyra said knowing the conversation was over and opened her bedroom door to head downstairs.

She heard everyone in the dining room talking, probably still eating dinner. Everyone quieted when they saw me walk in the room. “What did I miss?”

“Not much,” Tessa replied with a smile.

“Sit down. I will get you a plate,” her mom offered.

“Thanks mom. I’m starving,” but suddenly she wasn’t.

“We were just talking about your grandmother and Uncle Theos. They called earlier and want us to leave here sooner than we originally planned. Your grandmother likes to get her way so she is sending her staff her to help us tie up the loose ends allowing us to leave in a few days.”

“And you are just going to let her do that, dad?”

“We learned a long time ago that no one lets your grandmother do anything,” her Uncle Chris replied.

“I forgot to mention that since they were going to be here for a while, she was going to have them build enough housing to accommodate the staff and their families. She said whether we knew or not, we needed the help full-time.”

“And there is no point in argument because she will always win,” her Aunt Emi said laughing and shaking her head as if remembering a not too recent experience.

“And somehow, she is usually right,” her mom added.

Kyra’s mom had no sooner put her plate of dinner in front of her when there was a knock on the front door. Everyone looked at Cassie who closed her eyes for just a couple of seconds before looking back to Kyra and then to her dad.

“And so, it begins. Its ok. Answer the door.”

“I’ll go with you Chris,” Kyra’s dad offered and they both walked out of the dining room.

“What’s beginning Cassie?” asked her mom but Cassie didn’t answer and only kept her eyes on the entrance.

“We should go into the library,” Kyra suggested as she walked out of the dining followed by everyone else.

A few minutes later the men entered the library leading an older gentleman. He was tall and well dressed in a white button-up shirt and grey pants. He looked about his mid-sixties but was very muscular. It was his blue eyes that stood out. Kyra, Cassie, Alexis, Tessa, Helena, Ellie and Kat looked at each other knowing they have seen him before. He was the same one who read them bedtime stories up until a few years ago.

“I second Cassie’s statement,” Kyra said and stared at the older man with balled up fists. “It took long enough for you to show up.”

“I am sorry for not being there for you. To answer all of those questions you must have. I was hoping by staying away, it would give you and your family more time but your powers as new as they are to you have already lit up enough for others to find you.”

Finally, able to speak, Kyra’s mom walked up to the older man and actually punched him so hard in the jaw that he stumbled back. “It was you that night in the tent. Do you know how long I blamed myself for not knowing immediately you were not my husband? And now you just walk in here like it was water under the bridge that you took advantage of me.”

“You are very strong for being a human female.”

“We now know that you are not human. But are not smart by saying that because you will turn an already angry female angrier which is not healthy, no matter what you are,” Chris offered seeing his wife ready to go off of their visitor.

“I apologize. I only meant to give you a complement. From the first time I saw you and your sister, I was stunned by your beauty and I had to have you. Most women throw themselves at me. But when I tried talking to both of you, the books received more attention than I did,” he said looking at Kyra’s mom first and then turning his glaze to her Aunt Emi.

“I remember you now,” Emi replied. “Rhea, we were in the library studying for a chemistry exam. I guess it was a younger version of him approached us. He had dark hair, clean shaven and smelled really good.”

“Oh, that’s right. We had already fallen for Alex and Chris and just needed to focus on our exam.”

“Maybe, if we hadn’t already met the loves of our lives, we would have paid you more attention.  But, these two swept us off our feet,” Emi continued as she and Rhea went to stand next to their husbands who quickly grabbed their hands to show the solidarity.

“We knew there was no one else for us.”

“I tried to move past the rejection, but I found myself still wanting both of you. And found my opportunity the night of the camping trip.  I would have had both of you that night but was interrupted and had to leave before I had the chance.”

“Who are you?” Kyra’s dad asked.  

 “Good girl!” came a voice in Kyra’s head obviously pleased that she had not said anything about his identity. Kyra focused on her parents and the question they asked, curious to hear if he told them the truth or not.

“Your family does really good work here,” he replied trying not to answer the question.

“Enough!” exclaimed Kyra’s mom. “First you are going to tell us who you are, then you are going to tell us why you are here.”

“And why we are in danger,” Cassie added as she too walked to stand next to her mom.

The air in the room changed at that moment.  Rhea grabbed Emi’s hand, Kyra, Cassie and Alexis moved to stand in front of their parents while Tessa, Helena, Ellie and Kat stood in front of theirs. The older man blinked and shook his head.

“I am not here to harm you or bring any trouble. Your lives are about to be turned upside down and I wanted to see you before it happened,” he said as he looked at Kyra who just stared at him now with fury on her face. “I am Zeus, son to Cronos and ruler of the Olympian.”

“Like Greek mythology?” asked Kat.

“Yes, little one.”

“You are the one who caused the storm last night,” Chris spoke up.

 “I apologize for the storm. I know it caused some damage, and that created more work but I do not appreciate when my orders are not followed.”

“Your orders? If you are talking about those notes sent with the flowers, we kept those hidden. But in a house with 7 teenage girls, how long did you really expect for those letters to remain unfound?” Rhea shot back at him.

“You have no right to come in here and act like you are our master and expect us to what, bow down to you? I don’t think so. And like other power-hungry egotistic ruler, you act first before finding out all of the facts.” Kyra’s ability to keep her temper in checked had reached its limit and that was when she saw a grin break across his face.

“You are definitely my daughter. No one else would ever talk to me like this. You speak the truth candidly, not out of malice towards me but out of love and protection for your family. Those are very admirable qualities.”

“I don’t care what you think. You took advantage of my mother and now you prance in here for what? To warn of us that we are danger. Newsflash. We already knew that. Are you going to help protect us? Or just leave saying you can’t be involved?”

“If the stories I read have any truth, then You have made many enemies during your existence. I guess it’s easier for them attack us as a way to get to you.” Cassie said as she glared at him.

“I had hoped to keep you hidden and your family safe a little longer, but that is no longer possible. I have father many children over the years and this is the first time that my offspring is being seen as a threat. The longer you would have remained hidden, the more of a chance you would have had to gain some of your powers.”

“What powers?” Helena and Ellie asked.

“You are what some would call a demi-god. These are children who are born to a god and a human and is not that uncommon.  However, most of these children do not find out about their lineage because their potential power is not significant enough to threaten the balance of power between the gods. You sometimes see a child prodigy and think about what gifts they have been given, but most of those prodigies are probably demi-gods who have not been claimed by their immortal parent. It is only once they are claimed that they can be offered the trials so they can prove they are worthy to receive all of their powers.”

“You’re saying I am some sort of demi-god?”

“Yes and you once you the powers have been earned, you will level of strength will be almost as strong as myself. I have been watching your family, since the day of the camping trip and feel protective of all of you. I have to admit that this is a first time since Hercules that I have grown such genuine affection. The Fates have told me that you must accept and pass the trials if there is any hope to keep your family safe. I understand that I cannot trust anyone at this point and must work to figure out who is taking which sides in this new battle for power.”

“I only want my family safe,” Kyra replied with less anger now but more determination.

“If you choose not to accept, I will use my power to protect all of you as long as I can. However, there is danger from directions that I do not see. As my daughter, you were born with some power, which if you practice you can become efficient, but it will not be enough to protect your family. If you accept the trials, you will face several challenges which increases in intensity and danger. The greater the potential power, the more dangerous the challenge is. The fates will provide a messenger who will guide you. This messenger is someone you can trust, but I do not know who that is.”

“I need to speak with my family because it affects off of us and I don’t trust you.”

“I will need to have your answer within the week. In the meantime, please take your trip to Greece and stay with Theos and Mei. There will be additional protection there.”

“What do they have there that is different?” Rhea asked with concern and suspicion.

“The less you know, the safer everyone is,” Zeus replied.

“That storm of yours caused a lot of damage. It will take several days to repair even with help from people in town. We will leave as soon as they are done and things are stable here,” Chris commented.

“Please accept this ring as a birthday gift,” he said and handed Kyra a ring. The setting is a pearl surrounded with several diamonds and the band is not a metal but more like a smooth rock. 

“The only gift I want from you is protection for family,” Kyra said handing back the ring, angry at his actions to her mother and with the storm.

“I have watched you grow into a remarkable young woman, and I want to give you something that represents how I see you. I know you have many questions for me, and when we have more time and your family is safe, I will answer them.” Without taking the ring back, he headed for the door. “You have done a wonderful job raising this young woman.”

As soon as everyone hears the front the door close, the air in the room changed again. This time back to a calmer state.

“Well, that was intense,” Kyra joked, and everyone laughed with her.

Everyone was tired so after dinner was cleaned up, everyone headed up to their rooms. Kyra starts a fire in the fireplace to take the chill off the air and decides to take a shower to wash away the rest of the stress she was feeling. Once in her pajamas, Kyra curls into her bed hoping for another peaceful and restful slumber.  She is back in the nightmare with Tessa screaming for help and a black void swallowing everything in its path. Something is different. She finds she is able to move she sees Cassie and Alexis standing next to her. Standing next to Tessa who is stuck are her sisters Helena, Ellie and Kat.

“We’re coming. Try getting her free,” Kyra yells to them as she and the others run over to help.

With Tessa finally able to move, all of the girls move to the area furthest from the void but void is now all around them. Suddenly, it stops moving and there is a hand reaching out for Kyra who is startled by the touch. She turned to see whose hand it was and sees a friendly face.

“You must have had an interesting day today,” Atlas said.

“That is the understatement of the century,” Kyra responded, and they now stand back in the familiar field. There is a warm breeze and the sun is shining. “I found out that Zeus pissed off so many that no one has any idea how many directions or sources that danger is coming at my family from.”

“Would you introduce me?” Atlas asked noticing they were not alone.

“Of course. This is my cousin Tessa who you’ve seen before.”

“Nice to formally meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“Moving on. These are my sisters Cassie and Alexis.”

“I can see the strong family resemblance. It is nice to meet you.”

“And these are Tessa’s sisters, my cousins, Helena, Ellie and Kat,” Kyra continued as the three stand there staring at his chest before looking back at his face.

“It’s nice to meet all of you. I cannot say that I am surprised.”

“Why?”

“First, that Kyra has pulled you in here. You all share very strong connections, and I am not just speaking about being relatives. I see power within all of you,” he said, and Tessa’ face lights up.

“Power within all of us, really?”

“Your powers may not be as strong as Kyra’s, but you do have power. The trick is to find out what powers you have so you can use them.”

“Cool.”

Atlas looked at Tessa, and Kyra could read the question on the face about the use of temperature. “She means that she likes knowing that she has powers too.”

“Zeus has not been the kindest of rulers. His own wife Hera even tried to have him taken off the thrown once. I have also gotten to know the Fates and their sense of humor – it would be poetic justice for one of Zeus’ daughters to be involved with the man who led the charge to keep him for taking the thrown from his father.”

“Wait a second, we’re involved?” Kyra ask him, and he just winked back in response causing Kyra to laugh.

“What did Zeus say?” Atlas asked changing to topic quickly.

“He said we were in danger because he has a lot of enemies, but nothing helpful.”

“How do get out of here Kyra,” Kat asked.

“It’s not hard. Just focus on something else,” Tessa offered up and within a couple of seconds, it was just Atlas and Kyra again.