I managed to wrench myself out of his grip, then the shadows fell away, and we were visible again. Flustered, I looked around at the others, but they were busy engaged in lassoing each other. I didn’t think they had even noticed we’d disappeared.
After class I wasn’t sure if I should tell Jasmine and Georgina what had happened. I was definitely going to tell Lucian next chance we got to be alone, which wasn’t going to be any time soon, as we were ushered to our next class. The art of flying, which was a special lesson of transformation training.
The training was going to take place outside, and the reason for it was immediate as Hermes flew in with large, golden wings flapping and landed on the field in front of us. As we all gaped in awe, he folded his wings behind him and walked toward us.
“Good afternoon. Welcome to flying class.” Smiling, he looked at everyone. Out of all the Gods, Hermes was the most affable. He honestly didn’t look much older than we were, and always wore a buttoned-up shirt tucked into khaki pants and a bowtie. His dark brown hair always looked a bit unruly, and he constantly tucked it behind his ears.
“Today, I’m going to teach you how to fly. I know this may seem like an impossible feat, but I assure you, it is possible for every single one of you. You are here at this academy for a reason. Because you all have Gods’ blood running through your veins. And it’s through that you will be able to fly.”
Heracles joined us out on the field, and I got a little bit nervous.
“Now, learning to fly is really quite easy…” Hermes walked around then grabbed onto Diego, his wings unfurled, and they lifted into the sky.
Diego’s face was comical, and I would’ve laughed if Hermes wasn’t taking him up three hundred feet into the air. My stomach flipped over as I craned my neck and looked up at them, hovering in the sky. Nervous chatter rippled among the group.
“Vertigo ignites the fear of falling, hiding our will to fly.” Hermes’s voice boomed down to us. “So we must find our will to fly.”
Then he dropped Diego.
Diego’s screams echoed throughout the field as he fell. Before he hit the ground, Heracles was there. He caught him effortlessly and then set him onto his feet again. Diego leaned over and vomited.
Hermes fluttered back down to the ground. “Who wants to try?”
Everyone glanced nervously at each other. Then Lucian’s arm shot up. “I’ll go.”
“Excellent.”
Hermes grabbed Lucian, and they shot up into the air. My heart leapt into my throat, seeing him up so high. Then Hermes dropped him, and I put my hand over my mouth to stop the gasp.
Right before Lucian hit dirt, crimson wings popped out from his shoulder blades, and he hovered in midair. He hung there ten feet above us, looking like a God. A gorgeous, golden God who took my breath away.
Hermes flew down to hover beside him. “Well done, Lucian.” He beamed at him. “Now, who wants to go next?”
Several hands shot up into the air.
One by one, each student went up into the sky with Hermes and came down with wings. It took a few people a couple of tries, but eventually everyone produced ruby-red wings, even Revana, who unfortunately looked like a stunning Goddess.
I was the last to go. I really didn’t like heights.
Hermes stepped up to me. “Well, Miss Richmond, it’s now or never.”
Jasmine touched my shoulder. “You can do it, Mel. It’s easier than it looks. Honestly.”
I didn’t want to disagree with her and tell her I didn’t believe her one bit.
Hermes grabbed onto my arms, flying us up into the air. My stomach dropped, and for a moment I thought I might retch. But I kept it together, focusing my gaze on him and not the hard ground four hundred feet beneath us and sudden, crushing death.
“Are you ready?”
I shook my head. “No.”
“Good. Then that’s the perfect time to do something great.”
He let me go. I plummeted to the earth.
I squeezed my eyes shut, not wanting to see the ground as it came up to meet me, and thought about flying. How cool it would be. How amazing I would be flying around. How I was made of the power of wind.
I thought it would take me mere seconds to reach the ground. But somehow I still wasn’t there.
Then I heard loud gasps beneath me.
“Oh my Gods!”
“How is that possible?”
“Mel! You’re breathtaking.”
Slowly, I opened my eyes. I wasn’t a pancake on the ground; I was floating in the air. I could feel the rush of wind coming from behind me, along my cheeks. I looked down at the faces gaping up at me, and wondered why everyone looked so stunned. Hadn’t I produced wings like they had?
Hermes landed on the ground, reaching up and tugging on my foot. “Come down. Now.”
Surprised by the concern in his voice, I flapped my wings once and then settled down onto the ground. He hurried behind me, touching my back.
I looked to Lucian. “What’s going on?”
His smile nearly cracked his face. “Your wings, Blue. Look at your wings.”
Twisting my head, I looked over my shoulder to see huge, luxurious black wings protruding from my shoulder blades. Black, not red like everyone else’s.
“Uh, what the hell is going on?” I could hear the quaver in my voice.
Hermes lightly touched my shoulder. “You stay here.” He turned to the group. “Everyone else, please return to the school.”
Hermes then shot up into the sky and flew toward the outer building.
I looked at Jasmine, Georgina, Ren, and Lucian, pleading with them to stay with me, but they were herded away by Heracles. I heard a few people’s remarks as they moved back into the school.
“What do black wings mean?”
“Means she’s defective.”
I recognized that voice easily. Revana was obviously getting a kick out of this.
A few minutes later, Hermes returned with Zeus and Aphrodite, who were all flying in on golden wings.
The moment Aphrodite saw me she sucked in a breath. “How grotesque.”
Zeus walked around me, poked at my back, and ran his fingers over my feathers. That was a strange sensation that pulled at my belly. It didn’t feel good and made me a bit queasy. It was probably going to take a bit to be comfortable with the fact that I had wings, let alone black ones.
After some more intrusive poking and prodding, Zeus stood in front of me. “You can pull your wings in now.”
I did, the feeling of them receding into my body sending a shiver over the rest of me. “Do you know why I have black wings? Is it really bad? Am I diseased or something?”
He shook his head. “No, you’re not diseased.”
“Then why? Did I do something wrong?”
“We need to confer with the other Gods. I suggest you return to your dorm with your peers.”
I walked toward the doors to the school, but instead turned left to go out into the school grounds. I didn’t want to be bombarded with a million questions that I didn’t have an answer to. I needed some time alone to figure it out. There had to be a logical reason why I had black wings and everyone else had red ones. Maybe it had something to do with what I’d endured during the lightning trials. Maybe it had literally burned inside my body.
Chapter Eighteen
MELANY
I didn’t really know where I was going until I rounded the corner of the academy and spotted the tall hedge maze. No one would think to find me in there. I’d gone through the maze once before with Georgina and Jasmine; it was a bit harder on my own. I ran into three dead ends before I found my way to the center.
The moment I saw the white wooden gazebo in the middle, I heard music playing, the strains of something classical. As I got closer, I spotted a man in a dark purple suit jacket and slacks sitting inside the gazebo, strumming a guitar.
He looked up and smiled when I approached. “Hello there, Melany.”
“Hey?” I’d never seen him before. I would’ve definitely remembered, as he was strikingly good looking with sharp cheekbones, a strong jaw with a bit of scruff, and large, dark eyes under thick, dark eyebrows. He had dark hair that was swept back off his forehead and curled around his ears.
“How’s your day been?”