Crystalline Melodies



Based on the Epic RP done by Victoria Fernandez and Baylie Mullikin.

Baylie Mullikin

 * "Grandfather"
 * Nicole Janes

Victoria Fernandez
All characters have been edited by Torissa Nikole to fit the plot of "Crystalline Melodies." All creators have been consulted and have given their consent for their OCs to appear in this work.
 * Krystal Blackwood
 * Aria Blackwood
 * Kaitlyn "Oppel" Blackwood
 * Jace
 * Raksa

Setting
"Crystalline Melodies" takes place in the general CHB world. It could be considered an AU or "Alternate Universe" as the ages of the original characters are their ages within the actual Heroes of Olympus series, but the work does not show any signs of their canon quests being in process. It is assumed that these quests have already happened (with the exception of Leo being reunited with Calypso).

Official Blurb
"So I asked myself 'Why must my childhood torture me so? Why won't it stay in the past where it belongs?' Alas, it was that day long ago--the day I killed my mother--that the Fates decided their vendetta against me was to begin. To make my life as miserable as possible, and laugh as I hardened myself and pushed through. They gave me every possible torture, and yet, they took away my ability to end it all. And that is why I am what I am. That is why I must do this. I must. There is no other way."

--Krystal Melody Blackwood 



“Every time I watched someone die at the hands of the person I didn't know I was, the person I hated most, I'd watch a chunk of my soul break off and die with them.”

Krystal has always been running. She lives by two simple rules. One: show no weakness. Any sign of one means people will try to take advantage of her. She has to appear indestructible if she wants to survive. They will always try to exploit her, the second they see any sign of a "how". She’s got to keep it all in. Two: Do whatever it takes to survive. Even if that means selling her soul to a slave-life of thievery, mercenarism, and worse. She’s never known anything else, really. Once, maybe things were different, but that was so long ago, she’s not even sure it ever actually happened.

But if this is how she grew up -- how she has been raised to live -- then why does it feel so wrong?

“My whole life, I was hoping I'd find a place where I wouldn't have to run. Where I wouldn't have to hide. I thought it would never come, but when it did, I swear, it was the best thing that ever happened to me. I was finally free. Why couldn’t it have lasted?”

When finally given the chance to change her lifestyle, Krystal latches onto it hungrily. Eager to leave behind her moralless life, she works harder than ever before to get to the place she has been told is a sanctuary for people like her: Camp Half-Blood. A place where not only will she be able to stop running and hiding, but where she will no longer be alone with the strange supernatural abilities she can never again deny having.

<span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">But even upon finally arriving, her trials are not near their end. Having been surrounded by adults her whole life (and not very good examples of them, for that matter), Krystal has not even the vaguest idea how to interact with anyone her own age. Constantly tense, alert, and waiting for someone to take attack, it’s nearly impossible for her to relax enough to enjoy her newfound freedom. And this is the least of her problems. Her past seems to have decided that pestering her is to become a new hobby, and is relentless about it. With her old enemy now threatening the camp, Krystal and her newly discovered sister and friend, Nicole Janes, must work together to overcome them, as well as the many obstacles that are thrown in their paths. With the consequences of both action and inaction hanging over their heads, Krystal’s options are becoming more and more limited by the day. And even if she somehow manages to escape her nemesis, can she outrun her past? Can she keep her friends from finding out whom she truly is? Can she keep her inner demons at bay long enough for a second chance -- in more than one way -- at life?

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:bold;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Dreaded secrets.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:bold;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Buried memories.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:bold;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Love, friendship, and hope...

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:bold;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Denial, despair, power, loss, pain, betrayal, and death...

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:bold;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">The Fates have more in store for Krystal yet.

11/9/14
Hey, everyone! I'm so glad you've come to check out my fan fiction. I really hope you enjoy it. If you do (and if you don't) I'd love to hear all and any thoughts on it in the comments! Thanks again!

PS: IT IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED THAT WHEN READING EACH CHAPTER YOU LISTEN TO THE SUGGESTED SONG ACCOMPANIMENT, AS IT WAS CAREFULLY PICKED TO HELP ADD TO THE MOOD OF THE CHAPTER, AND HELPS A LOT WITH FORESHADOWING AND INVOKING A STRONGER REACTION TO THE MORE EMOTIONAL SECTIO--screw scientific explanations, just listen to the song! =P

~Torissa Nikole

Chapter 1: [Past] I Give Pirates the Electric Chair
[SONG: "The End Is Where We Begin" by Thousand Foot Krutch

LINK: <span style="color:rgb(84,84,84);font-family:'CenturyGothic',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:15px;line-height:24px;">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPQ7mvL5_04&list=PLM9FZR7z-sIews7cqUOqp10NfKS6QKyuw&index=1 ]

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">I gripped my mom’s hand tightly as we wove through the crowd of people at the docks.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“We’re almost there,” my fourteen-year-old sister, Aria, whispered in my ear. “When we get there, I’ll give you some candy.” My eyes widened as my heart filled with excitement and anticipation. <span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-style:italic;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Candy! <span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;"> We weren’t ever able to afford things like that back then. I struggled against the urge to run on ahead of my mom and search for our boat myself. If I did that, Aria wouldn’t give me any candy. Only good girls got candy.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Mom let out a long breath of relief as we came into sight of our ship. It was nothing fantastic--just a dingy, undersized, overcrowded passenger freighter--but to my nine-year-old mind, it was a spectacular 1st class cruise ship, decked out with luxurious decorations and maids and butlers that tended to you as if you were royalty.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Mom put her arms around my neck and gave me a quick squeeze. “It may not be a palace, but that doesn’t make you any less a princess.” I smiled. She always had a way of making the best of every situation.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“I think it doesn’t matter if the path is perfect, but rather that the destination is,” Aria said thoughtfully.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Mom smiled. “And what could be more perfect than a vacation to Japan? We’re going to have so much fun. And I promise, things are going to be different for us now.” She grabbed our hands and pulled us up the gangplank and onto the deck.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">I looked around in wonderment, absorbing everything. I planted my feet into the ground, counteracting the gentle bobbing of the ship in the water. Men bustled about, loading crates of goods into the hold, while several more passengers boarded and were directed by crew members below-deck to their quarters. I pulled free of Mom’s hand and rushed over to the railing, peeking underneath the top bar at the greenish-blue water rippling in tiny waves below us. Scanning the horizon, I saw an opening in the harbor, an opening that allowed me to view the vast expanse of ocean, and the line where sky met water. My eyes trailed upwards, and the endless blue sky encompassed my line of sight. Beautiful clouds scudded across it, proudly displaying their complicated and erratic formation patterns for the land-dwellers below to see and admire. At that moment, all I wanted to do was fly. Fly right up into the clouds, speeding in circles around the world, letting the sky soak into my skin. And I somehow felt that if I just tried hard enough, I could.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Before I could make any sort of serious attempt, Mom wrapped her arms around my waist and plucked me off the railing, pulling me into a tight hug. “I love you, Krystal,” she said. “Let’s stay together, okay? We wouldn’t want you to miss the tour of the castle, would we?”

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">I giggled and scrambled to the ground. “No, Mommy! It’s not a castle! It’s a bird! A big giant bird that’ll carry us across the sky-ocean. We’re going to FLY to Tokyo!” Aria laughed as I thrust my arms straight out to my sides and ran in circles around them, imitating a bird in flight.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“As you wish, my queen,” Mom smiled warmly, the “laugh-lines” around her eyes crinkling, giver her a glowing, pleasant demeanor. I wrapped my arms around her waist and looked up into her eyes. “I’m going to fly someday, Mommy,” I spoke solemnly. She bent down and kissed the top of my head.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“I’ll bet you will.”

<p style="text-align:center;">Torissa Nikole (talk &bull; contribs) 03:14, November 10, 2014 (UTC)

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">I jerked my head up with a start, tense, as you are when you fall in a dream and wake up. It was the third evening I’d spent watching the sunset, a golden disk of pure, radiant energy that collided with the sea in a fireworks display of glorious reds, pinks, oranges, and violets. I gave a small smile. No matter how many times I watched it, I knew it would never cease being beautiful and majestic.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“What’re you doing?”

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">I turned my head to see Aria leaning against the railing, watching me. I looked back and forth between her and the sunset. The yellow haze made her bright red hair seem orange, and looking down to inspect my own, I saw it made my dirty blonde hair a lustrous golden.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“Watching Apollo,” I said simply.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“Apollo?” Aria chuckled. “Listening to Mom’s stories again?”

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">I shook my head defiantly. “No, they’re true! Apollo rides his golden sun chariot across the sky every day. He always shines brightest right before he disappears.”

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Aria hugged me. “You’re adorable.”

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“But I mean it!” I protested. “See, right over…” I turned and pointed in the direction of the setting sun, but was met with a large black dot on the horizon, blotting out a section of it. I pouted. “That stupid ship is blocking my view.”

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“What ship?” Aria leaned over the railing to get a better look, squinting against the sun. Her hair cascaded across her shoulders, rippling like waves in the chilled October wind. A shadow passed over her eyes. “Hmm... I think it IS a ship.” I heard a bit of commotion on the other side of the deck, and turned to see that some of the crew members had spotted it as well, and were crowding together for a better view.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“It’s just another freighter, you numbskulls.” One of them laughed after a moment. “Nothing to fuss over..”

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“But look!” Another cried. “Look how fast it’s moving! I’ve not seen a freighter quite that fast before.”

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">They looked at it for a minute or so more and I did as well. It was indeed moving faster than any sea-worthy object I’d seen (though with my limited experience with them, I doubted that meant much of anything), and had grown to at least thrice it’s initial size in the past five minutes. It appeared to be drawing closer. My heart began to beat faster, a sixth-sense telling me something bad was about to happen. I caught a couple more snatches of the crew’s conversation.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“...straight towards us..”

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“...knots over average speed…”

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“...tell the captain?”

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">As it drew nearer and nearer more crew members came out on deck. Aria and I watched, wide-eyed, curious to see how the staff would react. The intensity of their hushed and anxious whisperings sent a chill up my spine. If the big, tough grownups were scared or confused, then it must have been something very terrible. It now seemed to be less than a few miles away, and continued moving straight towards--no, straight in front of--us.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">It was going to intercept us.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Suddenly, all I could think of were the tales Mom used to tell me about terrible pirates with wooden legs, scraggly, unkempt hair, and hooks for hands that made you walk the plank, all the while grinning an evil, toothless grin. <span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-style:italic;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">‘Pirates.’ <span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;"> I thought,, adrenaline tearing through my veins like an electric fire. I was more acutely aware of my surroundings: the gentle bob of the boat under my feet, the rushed bustle of the crew members, the worried and thoughtful expression on Aria’s face. Suddenly, the entire freighter lurched sharply to port, and I had to grip the railing to keep from being thrown to the deck. “Aria!” I shouted, my heart leaping into my throat. “What’s happening?!” she exclaimed. My eyes never left the approaching vessel, black against the violet skyline. And it appeared to be speeding up, changing direction to match our rapidly altering course. There was not a doubt in my mind.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“Aria,” I said, my voice frighteningly calm and certain, “that boat is chasing us.”

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">She stared at it intently, and within a few minutes seemed to come to the same conclusion. I looked up at her, searching for some kind of reassurance in her beautiful blue eyes. But no, all that I found was fear: a fear that reflected my own all-too-accurately. There was something she wasn’t telling me. And that was what scared me the most. I grabbed onto Aria’s coat and yanked on it a couple times to get her attention. “Aria, what’s wrong? What’s going on?” She blinked as if waking from a daze, then put her hands on my shoulders and turned me around, towards the stairs leading below-deck. “Let’s go get Mom, okay? I’m sure everything will be fine.” I gulped back a whimper as Aria ran down the stairs and turned left, falling out of sight. I wanted to follow her -- to wrap my arms around her waist, bury my face in the soft, warm folds of her coat -- but my feet were rooted to the ground in fear. So instead I stood at the top of the stairs, my wide hazel eyes glued to the approaching vessel. What if it really <span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-style:italic;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">was <span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;"> pirates? By now, it was big enough to see tiny dots of movement on the deck. They moved around frantically, like ants preparing to serve a freshly slaughtered meal to their queen. I don’t know how it’s possible for people to look so menacing from such a distance, but I swear, those tiny dot-people looked positively evil. The wind picked up, biting at my sun-kissed cheeks. I shrunk into the shadows of the doorway, hiding as a few crew members started to usher some of the more panicky passengers below-deck. I could almost feel the crew members’ anxiety rolling off in waves, and it did nothing to calm my nerves. I leaned against the wall, hiding my face as a little child does when frightened. Granted, I was a little child, and I was frightened, but that’s not the point. The “If I can’t see you, then you can’t see me” philosophy and all that good stuff. With my ear pressed against the wall, I could tell the stairs must have run behind the captain’s office, because I heard a few of the crew members speaking in hushed and nervous tones

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“What do you mean, sir?”

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“Those parts are infested with ‘em. Did you radio for help?”

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“Yes, sir, but we’re too far out for anyone capable to have heard us. According to the maps and plans, the soonest we’re supposed to come across any other vessel is in two days. We’re stranded.”

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">The captain let out a long breath of exasperation. he sounded so hopeless, I wanted to melt into the ground and wait until I woke up from this way-too-realistic nightmare. Why couldn’t it have been just a good ol’ bad dream?

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Sadly, the Fates’ vendetta would not allow me such an escape. They’re not that kind. Trust me. I’d know.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Aria and Mom ran up just then, and Mom wrapped me in a tight, warm hug. “It’ll be alright, honey.” I pulled from her grasp and dashed after Aria, who had rushed over to the railing and was leaning over it, as if the few inches closer it got her would give her x-ray vision. I stood beside her as she reached into her coat pocket and pulled out the expensive pair of binoculars she got from a friend for her birthday. she pulled them up to her eyes and peered through them for the most excruciatingly long 30 seconds nine-year-old me ever had to wait. Suddenly, a look of sheer terror came over face.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">“Omigosh...Mom...Mom, they’ve got gu--!”

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">She was cut off by a terrible unearthly scream, and one of the crew members keeled over. The rest of the staff crowded around him, but not before I caught sight of him bleeding from a gaping hole in his temple, his lifeless eyes rolled back in his head: he was dead.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">From there on, things passed in a bit of a blur as my mind tried desperately to process it all. Aria pushed me onto the ground, yelling for everyone to get down. She gave a blood-curdling screech as a bullet hit her in the shoulder. Two more men fell down dead before everyone could get onto the deck. I felt Mom on the ground next to us, wrapping us in a hug which I then thought was for comfort but now realize was her protecting us. She whispered words of comfort, but it didn’t do much to calm Aria’s heart-wrenching cries of pain. The shadow of the demon-ship now loomed over us, and I shivered, more from fear than cold. My senses started to leave me, and I felt as if I were watching the whole thing from outside my body. Our freighter had stopped completely by now, and the sleek black ship had docked itself to the port side of us. Tall, muscular, dark men in black clothes leaped from their ship to ours, and I knew instantly that these men were more terrible than any pirates my imagination could have concocted in the worst of nightmares. They pointed their guns at everyone, barking out orders for us to stay down. One of the crew members tried to approach them, hands out in a peaceful manner, and his reward was a bullet to the gut. They stormed below deck and came up a few minutes later with all of the passengers and crew in tow -- plus two more corpses to add to their ever-growing collection. I thought I would be sick to my stomach. They ordered us to stand, and we did. They began to divide us into groups by age, anyone under 50 being ushered onto the black ship. The three of us -- Mom, Aria, and I -- were huddled together, Aria leaning on Mom for support. The front of her jacket was soaked red.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Next, the men began to separate the children from the parents. There were only a few other kids on board, but the sobs of the mothers as their toddlers and tweens were dragged away from them was nearly enough to make me burst with anger all the same. Then they came for us. <span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-style:italic;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">We <span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;"> were being dragged away from Mom, and I was too shell-shocked to resist. I stood next to a boy my age, who I didn’t remember seeing before. Mom was completely stiff, and I could literally see the wheels in her head turning as she tried desperately to come up with some way out. Some way that would not result in our death. But she knew just as well as I did that there wasn’t one.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Her intense concentration caused her to stumble as she was being pulled into another group, and her limp made her fall to her knees with a cry. She’d always had a limp, but never told me where she got it or why. Well, now that limp appeared to be her downfall, as one of the men smacked her upside the head with the butt of his gun, yelling something at her in another language.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">My heartbeat pounded in my head, blocking out all sound, and anger caused my vision to blur. These men had no business showing up like this and demanding everyone do everything they asked. Even pirates should have some code of respect, even if it was a pretty dumbed-down one. Seeing them treat my mother like that...it broke me.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">And so I snapped.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Suddenly, I had broken away from the man’s grip, my fury lending me a superhuman strength. I dashed towards the man hitting Mom, and leaped onto his back, snarling like a rabid dog. He grabbed my legs and started to drag me off of his back, smirking at my seemingly pathetic attempt at stopping him, but then, something happened. He began to shake, and the small shivers slowly turned into convulsions, and before I knew it, he had fallen face first onto the deck, his eyes as dead as the corpses' lying not ten feet away. I sat there on his back in complete and total shock, even as more angry men tried to drag me off of the dead man’s back. Even then, the second they touched me, they were thrown back by some sort of force field. I blinked, trying to clear my vision, and realized that pure electricity was coursing from my hands and around my body in waves.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-style:italic;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">Lightning?

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">The rest of the men stepped back in fear, wide-eyed. The field of energy around me imploded, and I felt suddenly exhausted, like all of my life-force had dissipated along with it. My consciousness started to slip away, black tendrils creeping onto the edge of my vision. Only then, as I went limp and fell next to the dead man, did I realize that he had fallen on top of my mother, and by the cold, absent look in her eyes, I hadn’t just electrocuted him. I heard someone screaming, and I looked around to see who it was.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">And then I realized it was me.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">With that, I curled up into a fetal position, and waited to die, or wake up, or <span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-style:italic;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">something <span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">.

<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.15;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;text-indent:36pt;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">And then I slept. <span style="font-size:15px;font-family:'DroidSans';color:#000000;font-weight:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;">