Unexpected
Wynnona
All of us stare at the book as the green light glows brightly. The book flips open to a random page. Athena's beautiful and perfect writing comes onto the page.
Welcome one, welcome all
Warriors of mine you shall be
Travel here
Travel far
Two more must be found
To complete the stone
"That's weird." Rochet says.
"And it doesn't make sense." Zelanna comments next.
"Awesome." Oriana says simply, and I can't help but smile at her.
"We found out that Athena, the book, can only speak to us in puzzles and riddles." I explain to the three. The twins nod and Oriana smiles, her golden eyes sparkling.
"So cool." She says, eyes studying the book. The stone stops glowing, and I put the book into my pocket. Brett has left into the ship with Keya, probably to get her something to eat then put her to bed. The twins tell me that they are finished, and the ship should work. My eyes stay fixed on the metal that is obviously different from the original ship. Right before my eyes the metal shifts and it looks as though no patch job was done. The twins go to get their stuff from their now scrapped ship as I show Oriana to her room. I'll place her right beside me so I can keep an eye on her. Star snuggles into my shoulders, his weight reassuring to me. I smile, scratching his head as he nuzzles into my cheek.
"Hi Star." I greet the fox as he stands on my shoulder, making himself comfortable around my neck. Once I show the twins their room, I head to the control panel at the front of my ship and sit down. I sit in the seat crisscross, allowing Star to curl up in my lap. After a couple minutes everyone joins me in the control room.
"Are we ready to go Wyatt?" Brett asks, studying Star with a loving smile for the fox.
"Yeah, everyone hold on." I tell them all as I take off, pulling the hair around my right eye away so I can see the creature out there. I fly us out of the planet's atmosphere and dodge the many flailing limbs of the creature. We get away from the creature successfully without breaking anything. I enter what I am now calling light speed because Star Wars is awesome and sit back, playing with Star's toe beans. Everyone disperses and goes off to do their own thing on the ship. I stay and watch the universe zip by.
"Arrival to the coordinates provided by Giovanni is five hours." Dayna's voice says.
"Thanks Dayna." I mutter as I settle into my seat, the universe zipping by lulling me to sleep.
I look around, finding myself standing on water. Before me is Athena. She is facing me this time, but her face has been blurred out. She wears a short white dress. The fabric ends just above her knees, a deep dip between her breasts with noodle thin straps holding the dress on. Her feet are bare as she stands before me.
Athena
She is beautiful. Wynnona Allen, my champion, my gladiator. I knew she would be the one to stop Needledrop the moment Stardust laid eyes on her. She now stands before me on my plane, the place where I am trapped. I watch as her mismatched eyes study my form. She stands in a worn leather jacket that doesn't look fully black anymore. It's also a size too big for her, likely belonging to someone else before she got it.
Under her jacket is a loose fit, dark blue shirt that hides her figure masterfully. Her hands have a pair of black, fingerless gloves. The many rings I remember her wearing are now gone. She wears a pair of dark grey skinny jeans that have rips up and down the front and a pair of ankle high boots that are covered in mud and look rather worn.
Her hair is a deep red, almost crimson, that is thick and untamed. All of it is kept short but a section that falls over her right eye, hiding the pale violet eye that displays her genetic heritage.
"Athena?" She asks aloud. Her voice isn't as sweet and melodic as many woman's are, but instead has a masculine sort of edge to it. I'd assume that comes from her genetic heritage as well.
"Hello Wynnona." I tell her softly with a smile, but she can't see my face because of the wall blocking me from the outside world. "We don't have much time, but you need to listen to me."
"You're trapped." She whispers to herself, almost as if she is just coming to that realization. She steps forward only to be stopped.
"Yes, but that isn't important now." I tell her seriously. Her face contorts in worry and it makes my heart ache. "You will soon meet with Giovanni and the green stone will be complete. Do not take the Mech twins with you, leave them at the Allies base." She nods along to everything I say. "Oriana will be an important ally to you. You must promise me something."
"Anything." She says determination swirling in her eyes.
"Be strong and fight, for yourself and your family. Fight the darkest side of yourself." The space between the two of us starts to crumble, the water Wynonna stands on starting to become restless. "And for the love of the Elder Gods stop drinking." She gives me a smirk as she disappears in a whirlwind of water. Stardust appears at my feet, rubbing up against my legs. "Take care of her my furry friend." I tell him as I crouch down to pet him. He lets out a happy yip before leaving me alone.
Wynnona
I wake up to Dayna's voice.
"You have arrived at the assigned coordinates." She says in what I'm finding to be a regular monotone.
"Thanks Dayna." I groan in a tired voice as I adjust myself in my seat. I look out at the area in front of me and see a huge system of metal and tunnels. One huge looking ship.
"Unidentified craft, you are entering a restricted area. Turn around and leave immediately." A strict male voice comes over the speakers. I can only assume it's someone from the huge ship.
"Hi. Yeah, I was given these coordinates from Giovanni." I try to explain to this annoying ass guy who keeps shouting at me.
"Turn around immediately and leave this area or we will open fire." On cue, guns rise from the ship and point at us. I finally allow my temper to take hold of me and shout through the communication radio.
"My name is Wynnona Allen and I am one of the keepers of the book Athena." I growl at the guy. There is a moment of silence before the guns drop and a hatch for us to fly into drops open. "Thank you." I say with sass and sarcasm as we fly in. I land the ship as the hatch closes behind us. Me, Brett, Keya, the twins, and Oriana leave the ship to be greeted by a large group of people. My hands go into my jacket pockets to clutch at the journal in my pocket.
The twins stare at everything around us in awe and fascination. People part as we all walk through. I scan everyone for the familiar face of Giovanni or Lillian or Jake.
"Move." I hear a strong, stern, female voice come from the crowd. People move faster to get out of her way and with the aura of power radiating from the woman, I can tell she's the leader. Behind her is her exact replica in male form, Giovanni. I can see a slight bruise starting to form on Giovanni's cheek and the necklace he once wore is gone, now replaced with a locket. I can also see Jake and Lillian hiding at the back of the group. Lillian holding back a visibly angry Jake. "Who the hell are you?" The woman growls at us. I recognize her as an older form of Inezze, the woman from my dreams.
"Giovanni gave me these coordinates to get here." I explain calmly. "He said I could get help and more information about Needledrop." Everyone tensed up as I speak, the woman turning to give Giovanni a harsh look.
"Please follow me to somewhere we can speak privately. Jake and Lillian will show your companions around." I don't like the way she says any of this, especially the word companions. I follow her and Giovanni, my friends and the others following me. She whispers something to Jake and Lillian, and they take the twins and Oriana away with them. I catch the worried look Jake sends Giovanni. I also don't miss the ring on Jake's hand that wasn't there last time I saw him.
Inezze leads us to an office, the door thick and heavy. Likely to stop anyone outside from eavesdropping on the conversations she has. The door slams behind us making Keya jump into Brett. Star nuzzles deeper into my neck in fear. I steal myself, preparing for the worst. If she's scared Star, she's a threat I need to be prepared for.
"Stupid boy." She shouts and a loud smack resonates in my ears. The room falls deathly silent as we all watch what's happening before us. Giovanni's head is tipped to the side, his already purpling cheek growing a deeper shade of violet. It registers to me that Inezze has slapped him. "You don't go handing out our location to any starry-eyed girl looking for your attention."
"Excuse me?" I am astounded by her words. She doesn't know a thing about me, and she's just assumed that about me. And, how dare she? Giovanni is not my type. He's also with Jake!
"I'll deal with you later." She gives me a sharp pointed look as my anger boils. Simmering through my being as I want to lunge at her.
"She has the book with-" Giovanni is about to say but is cut off by another, rather harsh slap that sends him stumbling back a couple steps.
"That book is a myth; you should know that by now." She steps forward and hits him again. That's when I try to lunge for her, but Brett grabs my waist and stops me. He holds me by the waist holding me tight against his chest as I flail and attempt to fight against his grip. "It's a myth and you should know that after years of hunting it. Or did you get too sidetracked by that toy of yours?" I finally snap when I see the fear and pain that's twisted in Giovanni's eyes. This isn't the woman from my dreams. This is an abusive monster destroying a perfectly loving and caring boy.
I break Brett's grip on me and charge in front of Giovanni, pushing him to the ground behind me, Inezze's hand colliding with my face instead of his. My right cheek stings as my bangs grow dishevelled and reveal my violet eye. Giovanni's face holds a mix of emotions that I see out of the corner of my eye. Shock, amazement, thankfulness.
"Enough!" I shout, shocking myself with the power that shakes the room. The heavy door creaks open just enough for a body to slip through. Jake comes running in as I stare into Inezze's shocked eyes, glaring harshly at her.
"Who are you?" She asks me softly, taking a couple steps back from me. I notice a green glow illuminating the room coming from my pocket. I ignore it and take a menacing step towards Inezze. She shakes in fear slightly as she stares into my mismatched eyes. "I've never felt power like this." She whispers under her breath.
"Giovanni." I hear Jake whisper to Giovanni as he looks at his likely horrified and bruised face. I make the mistake of turning my eyes away from Inezze to check on Giovanni. "Wynnona!" He shouts in warning.
Inezze's powerful fist travels straight for me, but I catch it midair. The force of it sends both Brett and Keya to the floor.
"I'll kill you for interfering." She growls at me. As I hold her fist in a tight grip, I calculate the many ways this could play out. I feel this pull and loyalty to Giovanni. I will not stand by and watch as he is abused.
"Mother stop!" Giovanni shouts from the floor behind me, desperation in his voice. "Please!"
"Shut your mouth." She tells him harshly as she starts to lean some of her weight into me.
"She's my sister!" At his words her and I both stop and freeze, the green light I saw through the corner of my eye now gone, replaced by a violet one.