Tempest

Ten

[de integro / again]

Miles of America raced past the windows for hours, reminding Tessa of how far she was getting from her home court. She debated trying to get some sleep, but the nerves in her stomach were preventing her from getting any sort of rest. Every muscle in her body tensed if someone got up from their seat to use the bathroom or grab something from their luggage.

She didn't know why she was so jumpy. At camp, anytime they trained, she would be calm and collected. Now in the real world, it seemed to hit her just how easily something could go horribly wrong. How far away was she from camp now? Couple hundred miles?

You must not let these weaknesses get to your head, and more so, your heart.

Her father's words still reverberated through her head as Tessa tried to make sense of what could await her on this quest. Apparently, she was destined for greatness and prosperity, but only if she succeeded on this quest. If she failed...well, Tessa knew enough about the dangers of being a demigod to know that failure as a demigod is often something you don't get a do-over from.

Tessa took a breath, shifting in her seat. She looked beside her at Dale, who was snoozing away, her head rested back against the seat. Tessa envied her best friend for being able to sleep in circumstances such as these.

Tessa leant forward to check on the boys across the aisle. Reese had the window seat, and like Tessa, he had been staring out the window. He fiddled with a wallet, which Tessa found odd, but with a rack of her brain, she remembered that that was merely the son of Apollo's bow in its dormant form.

Then, there was Kaden. He sat in the aisle seat, fast asleep. His brows were slightly knit, which Tessa found endearing. Tessa felt a quick pang to be beside him, and just as quickly forced the urge down. Not the time.

However, she continued to look at Kaden. Her mind traced back to his torture at Phobos' hand, and the names that he had screamed apologies to. She remembered how he had looked at her through his broken visage, and whatever he saw seemed to crush him even more. Camp Halfblood's golden boy had some secrets, and Tessa couldn't fight the want to discover what they were.

The train began to slow down, and Tessa felt something bump sharply into the back of her seat. Suddenly, Mark popped up behind her, blinking around in a daze.

"I had the weirdest dream," he said upon seeing Tessa. "Wait, are we slowing down?"

Tessa nodded. "Yeah, time flies." 

Suddenly, an unnerving chill went down her spine. Tessa straightened up as the train kept slowing down. She searched the train car for any sign that something was wrong, but came up empty. The lack of discovery made her even more on edge.

She leant over the seat to Mark, keeping an eye on the car. "Get your stuff, wake the others. Something's wrong," she whispered harshly in his ear.

Thankfully, the son of Iris didn't question it. He scurried into the aisle, grabbed his backpack from the compartment, and hurried to Reese and Kaden's aisle.

Tessa leant down and shook Dale gently. "Hey, Flower Child, wake up. We gotta go."

Dale blinked but before she could speak, Tessa leapt over her into the aisle, grabbing her backpack from above. She felt a sense of relief as soon as it was onto her back. She could leave now and abandon the feeling of unease that was radiating around her.