I was standing in the middle of darkness. I could see nothing, no exsistence, no life. Just complete darkness as fast as the eye can see. It felt like space, there seemed to be no air around me. But somehow I’m able to breathe, though the place seemed so airtight. There was no wind either, so maybe I was inside a deserted building or in a mine or cave underground. I touched the ground with my hands but when I did, there was nothing. It seemed to me I was standing on nothing. Everything felt so distant, it was as if nothing existed around me.

Suddenly the place lit up, as if someone switched on the light. It was blinding, I couldn’t see anything. It was like facing the sun head on, even when I closed my eyes the light shines through them. Then these shadows rised from the ground. They had the forms of humans, they started to dance around me, as if they were playing. They circled around me like ring around a rosy.

I counted about nine shadows, then I heard voices coming from them. They didn’t talk though, they sang. They sang like a chior, it was in both perfect melody and harmony. The song had ancient words in them, some words I caught were Greek, some in Latin. It was haunting but beautiful at the same time. The shadows spin faster and faster around me. They spun so fast, it seemed faster than the speed of light, Apollo might have been jealous. The faster they spun, the louder thay sang. My ears started to hum, I tried to cover my ears. My ears were about to pop, I could go deaf.

I yelled to the shadows. “Stop! Make it stop!”

As I plead for them to stop, some ghostly light came out of my mouth. It looked like a ghost, but more like a soul. The more I yell, the more it seemed to stream out of my mouth. I tried to grab it, but it got away from my grasp. I screamed, I wanted it back, I wanted whatever it was back. But when I screamed, nothing came out. The shadows came closer to me as they spun and sang. Then I was back to complete darkness.

I woke up and it was gone. I wanted to scream but I couldn’t. I fled my cabin planning to leave everything behind.

They found me several hours later. My so called “faithful” dog, Ceb tracked me down. Chiron, Mr. D, Fern and Argus had followed her when she picked up my scent. I sat by the lonely shores of firework beach. I was staring out to the lake with the stick in my hand drawing pictures.

Fern held my shoulder, “Where were you? The whole camp is panicked, looking for you.”

I turned around and Fern looked scared, frightened for me. But he looked worried and sad, because my eyes were stinged red. I’ve been crying the whole time I vanished from camp.

Mr D sneered, “Has the poor majesty been crying?”

Chiron looked at me. “Why were you gone? Tell us.”

I looked at the Chiron I always imagined in the stories I read. I thought of Chiron as kind and wise, I was glad it was true. I wanted to answer his question, I wanted to tell him why. But I couldn’t, nothing held me back. I could, I should. But I am literally unable to physically can’t talk. I didn’t lose my voice like most people get when they have a cold. There was only one way, it is gone. It was possible, though I didn’t know how. I wrote in the sand the only way my voice it gone.

                                                               My voice was stolen

Chiron set up a council at the big house. All of the counselors of each cabin were there. It made sense since I “panicked the whole camp” with my disappearance. The council was around the ping pong table of the Big House’s rec room. There was a serving of diet sodas ( courtesy of Mr D’s secret stash under the stairs) and some chips. Seymour was there, since he practically lives there.

All of the counselors for each cabin were there. Piper of Venus and Jason of Jupiter were talking with Leo of Vulcan. Connor tagged along with Travis from the Mercury cabin. Travis was pickpocketing a great stash of money from a napping Clovis of Somnus while Miranda Gardiner of the Ceres cabin had flowers come out of Clovis’ ear. Clarisse from the Mars cabin was picking a fight from Will Solace from the Apollo cabin. Butch of the Arcus cabin was showing off his rainbow tattoo to a gaga-eyed Lou Ellen of Trivia. Pollux in the Bachus cabin sat next to Mr. D who was into his gameboy. Chiron was in wheel chair form next to Fern and Rachel Dare who was the oracle of the camp. She was older that me with red hair with freckles across her face. thank the gods, another mortal. I’m glad I wasn’t the only mortal in a demigod camp.

Chiron gave me a portable whiteboard about the size of a folder with a black marker. Chiron had to read it out loud since all of the counselors were demigods have dyslexia. I wrote everything about the visit from the gods and the dream of my “soul” being stolen by 9 singing shadows. I didn’t add the love potion from Venus, it would seem too embarassing.

Chiron asked, “Is there anything else to add, Alexandria.”

I wrote something on the board and showed it to Chiron. He read it then made a stern face.

“This may seem stupid, but at least we’re communicating.”

I rolled my eyes as Travis whispered something to Connor making him laugh.

Connor finally calmed down from laughing and asked me, “Did you sold your voice for feet?”

I turned away. How did they think this was this funny?

Clarisse glared at them, “Nice job, Stolls.”

They apologize, they didn’t mean to.

Chiron said in a reassuring voice, “It’ll be okay. I understand how you’re feeling. Everything will go back to-”

I slammed the whiteboard to the ground. Chiron for once was wrong. It won’t be okay. He doesn’t understand what’s it’s like not to speak. And everything will never go back to normal. Nothing will ever come out, I can’t sing, talk, argue or anything. Chiron sighed, he never will understand.

Leo then came up with an idea. He wrote on my whiteboard, the whole alphabet in morse code.

He made a grin. “This will totally work.”

I followed the code and tapped a pattern on the board. He listened and looked at his code.

“Hey!” He cried. “Take that back!”

I smirked at him and wrote something on the whiteboard. I handed it to Leo and he read it for 10 long minutes, then frowned.

“What do you mean by ‘Make me, son of Vulcan’? I mean seriously, why do people like Star Trek?”

I was confused, Vulcan was the Roman version of Hephaestus. When I took back the board, I bit my lip. In my own handwriting I wrote Vulcan, I couldn’t believe it. How can I write something in (shiver) Roman?

I had Greek blood in me, why will I write something in Roman instead of Greek? I then realized, that love potion Aphrodite gave, wasn’t a love potion. I felt so stupid, how can I think that thing was a love potion? Besides, she could’ve just told me it was Roman blood.

Chiron ordered me, “Alexandria, write down all of the 12 Olympians.”

I tried to write down the Greek gods, but my hand wouldn’t let me. I wrote all the gods but they came out in Roman. I thought of any Greek myths I know, but my mind came out blank. Instead, my head is filled with Roman myths that I’ve never heard of. I then erased the names and wrote down, explaining that I have Roman blood in me.

Mr. D looked up from his game and sighed. “I told Aphrodite not to say it was a love potion and just say the truth, that it was Roman blood.”

I blushed. Thanks a lot Mr. D, I thought. Now everyone knows I tried to take a love potion.

I wrote a question asking if I can make multiple selves of myself like the gods. I then showed it to Mr. D who nodded.

“All you need to focus your Roman version of yourself,” He explained. “All of the facts, names stuff like that. Focus it on one side of your body and the Greek at the other side.”

I followed Mr. D’s instructions. I focused all the myths I knew from Roman mythology on my right side. My head started to clear up, and I could remember Greek myths. I did the same thing to my other side. I felt myself glowing, shifting, but then it vanished with a poof. I was beaded with sweat, it was harder than it looks.

Mr. D said, “It’s harder since your not a god. Try harder this time.”

I closed my eyes and did it again. I concentrated on the Roman and Greek myths I know, and started to divide them into either side of me. I felt a bright light that then died down. I opened my eyes, my mind was filled with Greek myths again. But I felt a bit different, I didn’t feel like the sterner, more mature self again. I felt old, regular me.

I tried to say something back, but I couldn’t, I still don’t have a voice.

Chiron asked us. “You still can’t speak, can’t you?”

I nodded my head, pathetically.

Lou Ellen snapped her fingers.

She exclaimed. “I got it!”

Chiron asked, “Got what?”

“A god must have stolen her voice.”

Annabeth frowned. “Probably Hera, she did the same thing to Echo.”

But Piper pointed out, “But she didn’t totally steal her voice, she could repeat the last word a person says. So maybe she doesn’t have the “real” power to steal someone voice.”

Jason said, “But many gods make people blind, when they’re pissed off”.

Clarisse sighed. “But still, a god stole Alexandria’s voice.”

With that, all heads turned to Mr. D. Mr. D was still playing with his game boy. It seemed that he was winning.

“Yes, yes!” He yelled, “Score!”

He then looked up, finally noticing that everyone was looking at him.

He asked innocently, “What? I finally beat my high score.”

Clarisse repeated, “A god stole Alexandria’s voice.”

Mr. D huffed, “If you think any of the Olympians did that- he pointed to me- you’re out of your minds”.

Chiron coughed.

Mr. D then continued. “So if you are looking for the person who stole her voice, I suggest you ask our oracle.”

Everyone looked at me, fine I thought. I wrote on the board, asking who stole my voice. I then showed it to Rachel.

Rachel then fell over with closed her eyes. Butch caught her but she opened her eyes again. Instead of her normal green eyes, they were glowing like when you’re using nocturnal goggles and you see eyes. Green smoke started to surround us and out her mouth. She then talked in a whispery ancient-like voice and said:

“Six will find the voice that was divine,

From an oath it was stolen from nine,

Three in Chicago’s broadway and where jazz was born,

The rest are in the LA library having what was scorn,

Then meet in Mount Helicon to get the stolen,

And fight the oath that should go unbroken.”

Her eyes then melted back into her normal eyes. Butch set her on the sofa to sleep. There was an akward silence in the room. The only thing filling the silence was Mr. D’s gameboy’s beeping.

Lou Ellen broke the silence. “Nine stole Alexandria’s voice since it was divine.”

Will raised his hand. “I second it!”

Clarisse asked, “What is nine of something?”

Butch said, “There were nine shadows in her dream. You can’t possibly think nine gods hate her that much.”

Miranda grinned, “Alexandria got this in a dream. And I know only one person who would know.”

Everyone stared at the snoring Clovis. Clovis was blond, pudgy guy with a cow like face. It looked like all he did was sleep and eat. He had skinny arms, if a monster would fight him; I bet he can’t even lift a sword.

Lou nudged Butch, “You do it”.

Butch whispered, “No way, you do it.”

“I’ll sleep for a whole week,” Lou complained.

Annabeth sighed, “I’ll do it”.

She shook poor Clovis awake. Clovis woke up with a snort and opened his eyes. They were milky blue, they were so dreamy. And I didn’t mean the hot kind of dreamy. I mean just from the look of his eyes make me want to sleep and never wake up. He yawned and everyone yawned after him.

Annabeth complained, “You need to quit that.”

“Don’t blame me, my dad is Hypnos.” Clovis whined, he then looked at me. For once his eyes were wide awake.

He asked, “What did I miss?”

Chiron filled Clovis in on what the situation is and my ability to turn into a Roman and Greek self.

He pointed at me, “You turned back to Greek you.”

I nodded. He smiled and yawned.

He reached for his pillow. “My work here is done.”

Butch stole Clovis’ pillow. “Sorry man, we still need you.”

“Okay”, Clovis sighed. “But make it quick, or you’ll all wake up in a puddle of your own sticky drool tomorrow.”

Will explained, “We need you to find out who were those shadows.”

“Okay”, Clovis yawned. Everyone yawned after him.

Leo said weakly, “S-stop it, that is not cool.”

Clovis asked me, to come to him. He was still pretty tired and was too lazy to walk over to me by himself. He told me to look into his eyes, I looked at Chiron who told me to do that. I sat down, face to face with him, I looked deeply into his eyes, and it looked so sleepy.

Clovis whispered, “Sleep, sleep”.

I thought to myself, Make me. I felt myself droop, but I then shot up from the chair. I didn’t feel sleepy even a little bit.

“Wow”, Clovis said dreamily. “I’ve never met someone who’s so strong willed that I can’t make them sleep.”

Jason exclaimed, “Seriously, you can’t make her sleep? You did it to me.”

“It’s harder since she had a godly blood,” Clovis whined. “I can’t make a god sleep; she’s godlier than any normal demigod. I’ll try again, but she’ll have to cooperate so I can look into her dream.”

I sat back down and looked into his eyes. He eyes were drooping that made me even sleepier. I felt myself in that darkness again, becoming one with the darkness. I started to close my eyes in the thought of being consumed in utter darkness.

I woke up in the middle of a snore I was making.

Leo announced like  a game show host, “And she’s okay!”

I sat up from the sofa. I rubbed my eyes and everything came in focus again.

Chiron smiled, “Welcome back”.

Clovis yawned, making everyone yawn again.

Annabeth said, “We were getting worried. You started fade away, like literally fade away. Like when Jason lost his memories.”

Clovis said, “Your dream was very weird but I finally deciphered it. That weird mist or soul like thing coming out of your mouth was the form of your voice. Those shadowy things were dancing and singing around you, they were representing the form of music. I noticed that the shadows wore dresses and had a length of hair, they were all girls.”

“Okay,” Fern said. “Nine women stole your voice and they’re related to music. Anyone got any ideas?”

I clamped my mouth over my mouth. I wanted to cry, I knew who stole my voice. Will noticed then realized who it was.

“Oh my gods,” Will mumbled. “The muses, the nine muses stole her voice.”

Clovis stretched. “Well back to sleep, I wish you the best of luck Alex.”

He then stole back his pillow from Butch. Then landed face first into the pillow and started to snore.

Piper asked me, “But why will the muses want your voice.”

“No, no, no,” Fern muttered. “Don’t you remember? The compliment Apollo gave to Alex.”

Annabeth sat up. “But he didn’t really mean it.”

“Wrong,” Miranda said. “He swore on the River Styx.”

Then Jason finished. “And the muses took it for literal.”

I started to bang my head against the wall.

Butch muttered, “I don’t blame them. The River Styx is the most solemn oath.”

Piper asked, “But why is it a solemn oath that even the gods can’t break it?”

“The person or god who broke his/her oath is supposed to be banished from Mount Olympus for ten years and not allowed to have nectar or ambrosia during the ten years,” Chiron explained. “They have to drink the River Styx that will make them become crazy and unable to move in any which way for the first year. The rest they can’t attend any festivals for the gods.”

Mr. D said. “That’s why you must always think before you promise.”

Everyone felt a shiver in the air.

Leo said. “I still don’t get it.”

“What’s not to get?” Connor asked.

Travis said. “The muses stole Alexandria’s voice because they took a Apollo’s compliment literal.”

Leo cried, “What’s a muse?”

Everyone’s mouth dropped wide open. Mr. D even paused his game thanks to Leo’s lack of knowledge. I stopped banging my head just thinking why Leo doesn’t even know a simple subject of Greek mythology.

“The muses were the daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, the goddess of memory,” Chiron explained. “Mnemosyne told stories about the beginning of time. The nine muses started to turn her stories to songs and poems. The muses were inspired by the arts, science and literature.”

Will said, “Apollo, the god of music, trained them to sing together in harmony. They adored Apollo ever since. They played, sang and shared the many things they learned on Mount Helicon, the home of the muses and the sacred mountain of Apollo.”

“Right.” Chiron said, “Each muse had their own duty, or special art they did. There was Clio, muse of history, she wrote down a collection of historical events. Urania is the muse of astronomy, shared her love of the study of science. Melpomene, the muse of tradegy, having people see drama, human suffering, through her eyes. Then there is the muse of comedy, Thalia, who’s only motive is to spread laughter after Melpomene had heart-stricken everyone.”

“Thalia,” Jason said. “I never really saw Thalia as the humouress type.”

Leo sighed, “Yeah.”

I glared at him. I still remembered what Piper told me on how he fell in love with the hunter Thalia.

Chrion continued, “The muse of dancing, Terpsichore, spreading the expression and exercise of dance. Polyhymnia, muse of hymns, like song choirs sung for religious praise. Erato, the muse of lyrics and poems, make poems with rhythm, rhyme, alitteration and so on. Euterpe, the muse of music, made songs and sang them into man’s ears, she made them catchy to be remembered for eons.

Mr. D groaned, “Polyhymnia found the art of opera, and Erato picked up limericks after Apollo did. And don’t get me started on Euterpe, she’s been playing jazz on her saxaphone for a whole century.”

Chiron finished. “Then there is Calliope, muses of epics or heroic poetry. She’s the leader of her sisters and the mother of Orpheus. Epics are narrating poems, tells what happens throughout history, she is very close to her sister Clio.”

Leo asked, “So the muses are nine people who like ‘school’?”

Chiron answered, “Not necessarily school, but subjects in it like science, and language arts”.

Chiron said. “So, six will find what was divine.”

“I’ll go,” Fern said. “She’s my friend, I’m going.”

Travis and Connor appeared next to me. “We would love to go”.

Now I’m just getting annoyed with the Stoll brothers. So I started to crack my knuckles until the brothers got the point.

Travis stammered, “On the other hand-”

“-We’re going to polish Clarisse’s shields for her,” Connor finished.

Clarisse suddenly materialized behind them. She grabbed them by the collars and whispered into their ears.

Clarisse whispered, “You punks sure do. You can start with Maimer, it needs some sharpening.”

The Stoll brothers whimpered as they were forced to sit next to Clarisse the rest of the meeting.

Leo piped up, “I’m going, too”.

“Then I have to go.” Piper winked at me, “I got your back”.

“If Piper is going, then so am I,” Jason said.

Miranda said, “One more to go”.

No one offered. And no one could think of anyone who would want to go. Then I realized something about the prophecy. So I raised my hand to volunteer.

Butch shrugged, “The prophecy didn’t say that two of the same person can join”.

Fern said, “The prophecy said something about Chicago’s Broadway. Mr. D, do the muses have a specific theater they like.”

“As a matter of fact, they do,” Mr. D stated. “The Ohio Theater, it’s a lovely theater. It’s actually a favorite of mine, me being god of theater. Anyway, it’s at Columbus, Ohio. That should be your first stop.”

Annabeth sighed, “The Ohio Theater. Thomas W. Lamb was genius making the classic Spanish architecture and its theater design stage. It was considered a national historic landmark in 1977.”

Leo’s stomach started to growl. “Yum, lamb.”

Will said, “The jazz thing in the prophecy is easy. Jazz is a type of music with European and African traditions put together into one song. Louisiana is the state where jazz was born; they’re having a Jazz fest in a few days. You’re probably going to have to go there after the theater.”

Jason asked, “But, there’s also the library of LA. There are thousands of library branches in Los Angeles.”

Mr. D admitted, “The muses also have a favorite library, too. The Los Angeles Public Library, not really a branch. It’s the main branch of the whole city.”

“I’m really jealous of your quest”, Annabeth sighed again. “You’re going to the main branch library of Los Angeles. Constructed in 1926, the Richard Riordan Central Library was originally named the Los Angeles Central Library. Made by Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue, who made the library being inspired by Egyptian and Mediterranean architectural designs. The largest public funded library in the world, it has at least 6 million volumes.”

Leo coughed. “Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue?”

“Anyway, I have other stuff to do”, Annabeth stammered. “Even if it is a downtown Los Angeles landmark.”

Piper said, “Then there’s Mount Helicon, where is that?”

Chiron asked, “You should all know how Western Civilization works, and that the gods follow this “flame”. And that Mount Olympus has also moved west to The Empire State Building, yes?”

Piper nodded. “Yes.”

Then Leo shook his head. “No.”

Everyone sighed again. How can Leo not know any of this?

Chiron explained, “Western Civilization is a sort of force that moves with the civilization. It’s referred as the "flame", this force moves with the influences of mankind that was originally in Greece. Places in Greece, like Mount Olympus, moved here with Western Civilization. Leo, I’m very surprised you don’t know this. You are making the warship for the Great Prophecy to go to the roots of Olympus.”

Leo looked at me. He must have remembered that he “lied” saying he wasn’t in the Great Prophecy.

“Yeah, I knew that. I’m just checking in case no one knows any of that.”

Chiron cleared his throat. “Anyway, Mount Helicon had been moved to Mount Williamson. It’s in California, I think in Inyo National Forest.”

Jason said, “Okay then, we’ll travel to 3 states then climb up a mountain and ask for Alex’s voice back.”

“Not exactly,” Mr. D grumbled.

Miranda asked, “What do you mean?”

Mr. D explained, “There’s always a catch with all of this. There might be a deadline; I estimate at least nine days, until next Friday, June 23rd.”

Fern nodded. “It sort of makes sense, nine days and nine muses.”

Piper chuckled nervously, “And if we miss the deadline?”

Mr. D shrugged. “She might permanently lose your voice; it depends on how much those muses hate you.”

Fern gulped. I wrote down on the whiteboard and showed it to Fern, Leo, Piper, and Jason.

Fern sighed, “We don’t care how risky it is. But we won’t back down; we want you to have your voice back.”

I mouthed a silent thank you to them. Suddenly I felt myself getting what seems to be zapped. My head started to empty out all the Greek myths I know, and began to fill Roman myths I never knew about, again.

Leo said, “Ohh-kay, what happened just now?”

“There’s a time limit when you go back to Roman form. I say at least 30 minutes, and don’t bother doing it again today. You’ll just tire yourself out or kill yourself all together”, Mr. D sighed. “I bet you wonder why you feel Roman instead of your original form, Greek. We made it like that. No matter how much you dislike Roman culture, you’ll have to get use to it.”

Great, I’ll be Roman for the time being. I felt this cold shiver, what if Julies finds out?

Chiron said, "You can set out tomorrow. I suggest that you travel in the sky, since Jason will be joining you. So Phoenix will be joining you on the quest, and I’ll give you something to help you.”

With that, everyone shuffled out the big house. I smiled at Chiron, and then he gave me a pat in the back. I headed towards my cabin; I wanted to sleep while I’ll still can. I dread on the fact that I’ll have to go out there; I was worried that the monsters will find me again. And this time, they’ll finish the job.

___________________________________________________________________

The Muses, poor Alexandria. Will she get her voice back? Not only that this is her first quest, 4 powerful demigods and a saytr. That's going to attract a lot of monsters, so read the next chapter of my book. PEACE