Tempest

Nine

[defendit numerus / safety in numbers]

For a moment, everything was silent. Tessa blinked in amazement and shock at her father, who stood before her for the first time. The tide kept rolling in, and Poseidon only reeled in his fishing line and smiled at Tessa.

"I'm afraid I don't have much time, Tessa," Poseidon said at last. "I wanted to make sure I could speak with you before you departed on your expedition in the morning."

Tessa couldn't find words. Here was her father, after sixteen, nearly seventeen years, for the first time. She had so many questions, so many furies, so many reliefs to express, but she couldn't manage any of them. She simply nodded.

"I know you must have much to share with me, and I promise that one day we will sit down and discuss these matters, but for now, I have a gift for you." Poseidon held a hand out over the water, and a ripple of light soared across the waves. Something glowed in the god of the sea's palm, and the light and seawater materialized into a single bronze bracelet.

"A bracelet," Tessa noted bluntly.

Poseidon's eyes glinted in amusement. "I knew you were perceptive, Thalassa, but not this perceptive." He winked.

Tessa froze. "How'd you know that that's my full name?" She did everything in her power to go by Tessa at school and at camp. Not even Mark or Dale or even Kaden knew her full name.

"I'm your father," Poseidon said. "Of course I know your full name. Besides, it was my idea to name you Thalassa, but I like Tessa for short as well."

Tessa blinked. "It was?"

Poseidon nodded. "It means 'The Sea' in Greek." He looked at her and cleared his throat. "Regardless, yes, this is your gift."

Tessa looked at his outstretched hand cautiously before getting up from her rock and padding over to her father. Slowly, she grabbed the bracelet from his hand and slipped it on her wrist.

"It does not have a name, but like Tempest, this is merely its dormant form." Poseidon reached forward and tapped the bracelet.

Instantly, the bronze grew, spiraling around and around until it had become a shimmering shield, dotted with the same aquamarine gems as Tempest's hilt. Maybe it was a coincidence, but the shield left her sword arm bare, like Tessa subconsciously knew that it would become just that.

"This'll come in handy," Tessa murmured. She tapped the rim of the shield and watched as it shrank back into a bracelet.

Poseidon smiled, although it turned into a grimace as he looked at her longer. "Tessa, there is something you must know about this quest. You are destined for great things, my dear, and this quest is the door to that. However, you will come across great turmoil on your journey. You must not let these weaknesses get to your head, and more so, your heart."

He reached forward and grabbed her shoulder, looking into her eyes sternly. "I am aware of your panics, and of your flaws. I know you are strong, Tessa, one of the strongest heroes I have ever encountered. But while your fatal flaw is ambition, you must not let fear be your weakness. Deimos will use this to his advantage and the Fates have showed me what waits on your journey should you allow his power to overwhelm you."

"I-I won't," Tessa stammered. Her heart was pounding, as if not listening to her father's words.

"Do not trust your dreams," Poseidon urged. "They will only become realities should you allow them to." Thunder rumbled across the clear sky, and Poseidon let out a sigh. "I wish I could say more, but I would go against destiny." He stepped back into the water.