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I bring my laptop with me and stream two hours of trash TV while leaning against the dryers before returning to my apartment.
My brain feels utterly spent. At least I was able to turn off my thoughts for a while. Mind-numbing television was the perfect remedy for my racing mind.
Finally ready to end the day, I take a steaming hot shower to rinse off whatever ocean water is left on me before cozying up to my mountain of pillows and quilts.
I’m asleep in just a few breaths.
Chapter 8
THEY CAME IN THE NIGHT.
My sisters scramble within the moon goddess temple, frantically hurrying to hide our most precious artifacts before the battle makes its way up to us.
The temple is embedded into the mountainside, and from my vantage point, I have a clear view of the city expanse below.
Though daylight is just now breaking, I know with near certainty that no guards are coming to protect us.
Last night, my sisters and I watched in horror as the water beyond our city’s walls lit up like fireflies as hundreds of ships waited to attack us.
Many other attackers have tried to take the city by sea before, but these invaders are better prepared.
From the open gates and lack of gaping holes in the city walls, I know they must have come in through thesecret passages to open the gates unseen. By the time the city guards mounted a response, our enemies had full, unfettered access to the city.
When our citizens were evacuated through secret passageways, they were slaughtered by the invaders waiting within. The invaders are not interested in survivors.
Surrendering is not an option.
The screams of our people reverberate across city walls and echo up the mountain. The blood of Atlantis seeps into the cobbled stone paths, and our great buildings are crumbling.
The invaders are not here to take over the city. They want it to crumble to nothingness.
This isn’t conquering. It’s annihilation.
Much of my great city has grown quiet now, except for the occasional scream as another survivor is found and massacred.
I steel myself and touch my short swords, once again assuring myself I’m armed. Though the invaders have yet to set their sights on the temple, the muted sounds of the city tell me it won’t be long before they turn their attention to the final Atlanteans, who still draw breath.
A savage grin spreads across my face at the glorious thought that these men can bleed too and that soon, their blood will be mine to spill.
I turn my attention from the battle below and lock eyes with one of the senior priestesses.
“You’re ready, Cassandra?” she asks me.
I nod, grimly determined.
A single tear falls down the priestess’s cheek. She wraps her arms tightly around me, her voice quivering. “We always prayed this day would never come. When we sent you off to train as a Guardian – never did I think. No other before you have ever needed to complete this duty.”
I hug her back, an ache settling in my chest. “I’m prepared to do what I was destined for.”
At this, the priestesses’ eyebrows furrow, and she releases me, giving me a troubled look. “I want you to remember something, Cassandra, and to always keep this wisdom with you. Your destiny is your own. It is not something to be chosen by outsiders but from the force of your own will.” She looks incensed. I’m confused but nod to appease the elder.
The priestess nods her head approvingly before stepping back into the temple.
Just as she’s shutting the door, I call out. “Barricade the doors, and then get them out. All of them. The children know the way.”
The elder priestess looks surprised, but she nods before shutting the door. She isn’t fast enough, and I catch a glimpse of something new in her eyes.
Hope.
