HECATE RISING; The Quest for the Calling Stone

~Chapter 1~

             Ariel woke up on a particularly gloomy day. Well, she was awake but she didn't really get up. She laid in bed blinking the goop out of her eyes, the bell still ringing in her ears. At Grex Academy for Hekites, they were forced to get up earlier than dawn.

          "Thou who seeks an early rise shall getteth thy worm" is what Headmaster Lamio always says. Lamio was an interesting fellow. According to the other professors, he has been around since ancient times. He is also the General Hekite. There has never been another in the history of their kind, and something tells Ariel that there never will be. He always wore these brightly patterned suits, that when in the mortal world make it hard to blend in. His sleek black hair and strong physique make it hard to believe he's older than thirty. Well, millennia older. Yet again, Ariel is approaching her Century-old birthday, but she looks no more than thirteen.

          Speaking of Ariel, she rolled on to her back, dreading to face another day at Grex. Then the bell rang. Hmm.... that's weird, she thought. Often the bell only rings once before breakfast. Now she thought of it, the bell did sound different than usual. She listened for it again. It was a high trill sound. Quite annoying actually. That's when she sat bolt right up in her bunk, smacking her head on the ceiling. That's not the bell. It's the perimeter alarm. She grabbed her glasses, climbing down the ladder two rungs at a time, tripping over loose clothes and shoes. Outside of her dorm door, chaos broke loose. They had practiced protocol so many times, but it had never happened before. Looking out into the dorm hallway, no one was even slightly following protocol. There was more screaming than their annual talent show.

         "Stay calm. Please proceed to the Atrium for initial threat assessment". The striking yet familiar voice of Lamio blared over the loudspeakers. Ariel moved with the clamoring crowd, trying her best not to get trampled.

         The atrium was a mess. The usual elegant entry hall was packed with terrified students, and a make-shift podium stood at the back. Lamio was standing there patiently tapping his foot. The usual ornate gold trim was almost invisible with the blaring red lights reflecting off of them. The usual intricate constellation display on the ceiling was cloudy, the stars almost invisible behind the thick musk of fog; Danger.

        Lamio clapped. A wave of sound emitted from his hands, spreading across the frantic crowd. Immediately, the chatters stopped and everyone, including Ariel, covered their ears with their hands. The aftershock of the sound was powerful enough that everything fell silent. With the noise still ringing in her ears, she looked up.

      "As you all may have realized by now, that was our emergency alarm." Lamio calmly looked upon the crowd.

Ya, no duh. Ariel thought.

Whispers rang all throughout the Atrium.

     "What's the emergency?"

     "Are we gonna be okay?"

      " Is this a drill?"

By the panic she saw in the staff, Ariel assumed that this was not a drill. She was right. Well, sort of.

"There is an intruder".

Immediately after the words left the headmaster's lips, noise erupted from the hall.

"A mortal".