Chapter Text
Ever since she was born, it was as if some fundamental part of her, of her soul was missing. She felt the aching emptiness more vividly on certain days such as her birthday. Kassandra had never felt like she belonged anywhere. That was part of why she became a wandering misthios. Even when she finally had her family back, she was an outsider; always there but never a part of the family.
But ever since she had woken up today, something was different. It seemed like a weight she hadn’t even noticed was lifted from her chest. She could breath easily. It was odd, like the whole world had turned to the side a few degrees, while she was sleeping.
The new feeling left her restless and Alexios had noticed, offering to spar with her. Grateful, Kassandra took her brother’s offer.
King Archidamus had tasked Kassandra with clearing out a bandit camp in the Cave of Poseidon in the tip of Lakonia. The bandits were harassing and stealing from passing merchant ships.
Myrrine had heard of Kassandra’s task and invited the whole family to join her on the simple mission, along with Brasidas; who when questioned, said he was bored and stifled from lazing around his house, waiting for his shoulder to heal after the battle of Amphipolis.
Brasidas had managed to shift to the side, preventing Deimos from spearing his throat, catching his left shoulder instead. The healers warned him off for entering battles against Athenian’s while his muscles knitted back together, but he could engage simple bandits.
Typical Spartan’s, even when they are meant to be on bed rest, they still want to fight.
Kassandra suspected Brasidas wanted to keep an eye on Alexios, still not trusting him completely and seeing for himself that her brother had changed from the bloodthirsty Deimos into the awkward Alexios.
The group had finished sending the bandits to Hades and were camped away from the abandoned camp, near the beach. They were to ride for Sparta at first light tomorrow.
The two siblings picked up their respective weapons and settled into opening fighting stances on the edge of the clearing, next to the ocean.
By an unspoken signal, the two launched themselves forward, blades clashing in the middle. They separated and prowled around the spar ring, keeping each other in their sights.
Alexios rushed towards Kassandra, his xiphos flying through the air, aiming for an over cut towards her shoulder. She thrust her broken spear upwards, parrying the sword and pushing it towards the ground. Disengaging, Alexios jumped backwards and brought his weapon up, guarding his chest, just in time for his sister's follow up attack. Their blades clanged against each other, sparks flying, before Kassandra retreated, waiting for an opening.
In the middle of a thrust, she suddenly froze, turning towards the east as the world seemed to brighten around her than dim, before she felt the worst pain imaginable. Her spear slipped from her fingers, banging against the ground, as she fell to her knees, hands over her ears.
Burning fire sizzled over her nerves, creeping up from the tips of her toes, up her legs, past her chest and neck, settling inside her head. A sharp pain followed the fire, poking different sections of her brain and plucking bits and pieces from it, rearranging them in a stabbing pattern. The pain was worse than falling off Mount Taygetos and nearly breaking every bone in her body as she hit the rocky bottom.
Alexios frowned and stopped his xiphos in mid air, as Kassandra paused. She never paused in the middle of a fight, spar or otherwise. His eyes widened and his weapon met the ground as well, as he heard the most agonizing scream fall from Kassandra’s parted lips.
At her scream of pain, the once peaceful ocean suddenly erupted into a storm. Waves smashed against the beach furiously as the wind sent sand flying into the air.
Tendrils of sand and salty water lashed Alexios as he fought against the elements to reach his sister’s side. “Kassandra!” Alexios hit the ground, hands hovering over Kassandra’s fallen form, unsure if contact would hurt her. “Kassandra, what’s wrong! Answer me, sister!”
Alerted by Kassandra’s screams, Alexios’s yell and the changing weather, the other’s sped towards the fallen siblings, stilling as they took in the scene.
Nikolaos, Stentor and Brasidas immediately unsheathed their weapons, searching around the camp for danger.
Myrrine gasped, hand over her face before she gathered herself and knelt on Kassandra’s other side, hand pressed to her shoulder. She meet Alexios’s helpless gaze across her daughter’s bowed head. Her son shook his head, scowling as he answered his Mater’s unanswered question. I don’t know what happened.
Kassandra’s broken screams had fallen way to whimpers, tears streaming down her face, creating a puddle on the dusty ground.
“Kassandra, Mater is here. What is wrong my Lamb?”
Kassandra was deaf to the outside world, stuck in her world of agonizing pain. It seemed as if the pain lasted days, months, years before it slowly faded, leaving her exhausted. She slumped, hands slipping from clutching her head as she welcomed unconsciousness.
As Kassandra fell unconscious, the ocean and winds retreated, falling silent. They stood vigil, waiting until they were called to unleash their rage upon the world once again.
Myrrine caught Kassandra when she tipped forward, pulling her up and bringing her into an embrace, kissing her temple.
Alexios’s knees creaked as he stood up, hand on Myrrine’s shoulder. “Mater, we should move Kassandra to a bed roll.”
Taking in a heaving breath, Myrrine sighed. “Right, you’re right.” She looked up, catching Nikolaos’s worried gaze. The woman turned back to her son, gathering Kassandra in her arms. “Grab her legs, I don’t know if she sustained an injury when she hit the ground due to whatever happened to her. It’s better to be safe than sorry.”
Nodding, Alexios bent down and took hold of Kassandra’s legs. Together the two moved toward the bedrolls set beside the fire and laid Kassandra down on one softly.
Kassandra’s wails echoed in the group’s ears, unsettling them. They had never heard her scream for anything before. The worst sign of pain she would let show was a grunt. The freaky weather and Kassandra’s strange affliction set them on guard.
Stentor reached down and grabbed his sibling's weapons from the ground, following the two. He set them gently near the fire, joining Brasidas as he walked forward, carrying rags and refilled waterskins. Brasidas set them down next to Myrrine and stepped backwards. The two Spartan generals joined Nikolas who stood guard, with his back to his wife and son, as he held his spear in front of him with a white knuckled grip.
Myrrine poured water on one of the rags, dabbing sweat and dust off Kassandra's brow. She swiped slow strokes across newly uncovered skin as Alexios reached over Kassandra and unbuckled her armor from her, leaving her in a threadbare knee length chiton.
A gasp caught the four men's attention. They turned to face Kassandra, eyes wide as certain strands of her once chestnut brown hair slowly turned black. A single lock of white hair streaked against her temple, emphasizing Kassandra's new appearance.
“What the?” mutters Stentor. “Her hair suddenly changing colour isn’t possible.”
“It’s a sign of the Gods,” answered Brasidas, frowning. “Though I can’t say if it’s a welcomed sign or not.”
A burst of white light swept over the clearing, responding to Brasidas’s statement. Once the light dimed, a tall woman dressed in flowing white clothes and elaborate silver head gear stood in the middle of the clearing. The sunlight refracted from her body, creating shimmers in the air around her.
The warriors pivoted to face the newcomer, weapons held out in front of them.
“Who are you?” growled Alexios.
A regal voice answered him, meeting his eyes. “I am known as Aletheia.” She then dismissed Alexios, going to stand next to Kassandra. The moment Aletheia’s gaze met his, Alexios’s skin crawled, he could see civilisations rising and falling reflected in the eyes of a being ancient than him.
“The Goddess of truth, truthfulness, and sincerity,” breathed Myrrine, bowing to the goddess. “Please my Lady, do you know what happened to my daughter Kassandra?”
Aletheia sneered, waving her hand. “Do not compare me to the rest of my kind who love to be revered as Gods. I am simply a Isu, a being who came before, not a Goddess.”
“Yes, my Lady,” answers Brasidas tactfully, hiding a slight frown of confusion.
Shaking her head at their skepticism, Aletheia kneeled beside Kassandra, one hand on her brow. “It is rare for this to happen to a human naturally.”
Stentor stepped forward, frowning. “Naturally?”
Nikolaos talked over Stentor, eyes narrowed. “What is ailing my daughter?” He had failed Kassandra by not saving her that fateful night, but he would be damned before he made the same mistake. The Gods themselves would have to physically restrain him from completing any task his daughter needed.
Looking up, Aletheia rolled her eyes. “Peace. It will not hurt her.”
“It already has!” snapped Alexios.
A sharp gaze from Aletheia had him settling down, snarl transforming into a frown. “It only hurt Kassandra because her mind has unconsciously stopped the process from being able to continue, when it should have already been completed years ago.”
“What should have happened years ago?”
“What process?” asked Alexios and Stentor over the top of each other, before they turned to each other and scowled.
Aletheia continued. “After being born, as Kassandra continues to grow, her memories from her old life would slowly return as her brain’s capacity to process them would evolve. What was once a trickle of slowly returning memories turned into a dam full of memories waiting for Kassandra’s brain to let them be integrated and the dam has burst, causing a tidal wave of memories.”
Brasidas raised an eyebrow. “Memories from her old life?”
There was a pause as Myrrine, who had been silent through Aletheia’s revelations, turned to look at the woman in question. The mother narrowed her gaze at Aletheia, question poised as a statement, “My daughter has been reincarnated hasn’t she?”
Aletheia inclined her head.
Myrrine nodded, taking hold of her daughter and clutching her close. She nosed her daughter's hair, inhaling her slight scent of salty sea water. “If Kassandra’s memories were to slowly return as she grew older, why are they all returning now?”
Pausing, the Isu grimaced. “As there have been so few human reincarnations, I can only presume that the process would have halted if Kassandra had endured terrible trauma as a child.”
Nikolaos and Myrrine flinched. Everyone else glanced at the two before looking away.
Alethia dismissed their reactions. “As her memories are returning now, unconsciously she must have felt safe enough to finish processing them. Eventually the memories would fade, but as this is happening when she is an adult, her old life’s memories will be the dominant memories until they fade. She will still have the capacity to remember this life, but it may take some time to remember.”
With tears in her eyes, the strong Spartan woman looked up from her daughter’s hair. “Thank you, my Lady.”
“If I may be so bold as to ask, my Lady?” started Brasidas, faltering as he caught the ancient being’s eyes. He gathered his Spartan courage and continued. “By simply looking at Kassandra, how do you know she has been reincarnated?”
Aletheia sighed. “You would not understand the intricacies of reincarnation, but my husband Loki will be reincarnated sometime in the future. By looking through the Calculations, I can see the baby he will be reincarnated as.” She frowned baffled, “Though the baby’s features did not alter after it was born and I know all of the Isu who reincarnated and Kassandra is not a previous Isu. Whenever I have searched for Kassandra through the Calculations, she has always been murky, unclear. I can see her, but I cannot predict her actions or what has happened to her. It is as if there is a golden halo around her. I have never seen anything like it before.”
Ignoring the perplexing answer, Myrrine brought the conversation back on track. “When will Kassandra awaken?”
“When all of her memories have been integrated. The process may take a few hours or days. Do not disturb her while she is in this delicate state,” ordered Aletheia, standing up and taking a few steps backwards. “If you wish to know more, I suggest waiting for Kassandra to wake and asking her about her life before, though take care, her memories will be vivid and certain subjects may trigger flashbacks. I do not know what life she has lived before, but to reincarnate you must die.”
Everyone’s breath caught in their throats, as they clenched their fists, imagining what sort of death had befallen Kasandra. Did she go out in a blaze of glory, defending something important to her? They refused to believe she died in a pitiful way. Kassandra was strong.
“The Oracle of Delphi also might have some knowledge of what has happened. She communicates with forces beyond my understanding,” finished Aletheia.
Alexios snarled, looking feral as his eyes filled with anger, fingers forming indents in his palms. “The oracle would only say how Kassandra is an abomination for being reincarnated!”
Aletheia dipped her head. “Perhaps, but what harm shall it do? Either you believe the Pythia’s words or not.”
With her words hanging in the air, the same white glow from before sweeps over the clearing again as Aletheia takes her leave.
----------
“Rhea Jackson, you and your friends will perish under my power!”
–
“I’m so proud of you Rhea, my precious daughter.”
–
Darkness surrounded her, hellfire in the distance as thousands of monsters descended the hill. Rhea kept an eye on the horde, grabbing Annabeth's hand. “You're my best friend, Wise Girl.”
The daughter of Athena adjusted her grip on her knife, other hand held in Rhea's grip. "And you're mine Seaweed Brain. Till the end."
"Till the end," promised the daughter of Poseidon.
Together, the two demigod's charged the monsters head on, fierce glares expressing their determination. They were both getting out of here alive.
–
Glistening blue lights laid out in front of her, coral decorated the majestic palace walls. Rhea beamed, catching her father’s warm smile. “It’s gorgeous!”
–
“Pater, please! No, no!” screamed Kassandra, her shoulder nearly dislocated from her Pater’s firm grip, holding her over the side of the mountain. Betrayal filled her as she see’s Pater’s, no never Pater, Nikolaos’s blank face (No Pater would throw their child off a cliff. Was he ever her Pater. Did he even love her? She sobbed) before everything went black as she hit the rocks below.
–
“Here, like this Lamb,” smiled Mater, positioning Kassandra’s hands holding her baby brother. Kassandra carefully, lifted Alexios higher against her chest, peering into his face. A vicious love erupted from her heart seeing his baby blue orbs as he opens his eyes. You’re mine. I’ll never let anything hurt you as long as I'm alive.
–
Gasping, Kassandra looked up, elation filling her. He’s alive! Her baby brother Alexios is alive! For years she carried the guilt of pushing him off that mountain and killing him, but he’s alive!
Smiling hopefully, she whispered his name, “Alexios,” brow furrowing when he didn't look at her, only hoarsely yelling “Go!”
–
Smoke curled in the air as she leaned against her mum, chewing on a blue marshmallow. “What was, what was Dad like?”
Her mum brushed her hand through her hair, laughing faintly. “He was handsome and strong. You inherited his ocean changing eyes and black as the deepest water hair. He loves you.”
–
Kassandra wanted to scream to the heavens and bang her fists against the doors of Olympus.
Phoibe was just a little girl, full of potential. If they had to take away anyone, take her! She had done terrible things. If the Gods were punishing her, take her life ,not Phoibe's! It was only Aspasia, Sokrates and Hippokrates’s presence that stopped her from falling to her knees and alerting the guard’s attention as they hurried towards the Adrestia.
–
Finally she had her family together again, with her new brother Stentor. Kassandra felt content, watching Alexios and Stentor playfully rough and tumble, with Mater and Pater (He was trying to make up for his mistakes) on the sidelines smiling indulgently.
–
Ash blocked the sun from sight, casting a smoky shadow upon the dusty golden and blood filled field. Cries of fury and pain ringed in Rhea’s ears as she focused on the monster sneering cruelly in front of her.
The wind carried Gaea’s rasping voice directly to her. “Rhea Jackson, today you and all of Olympus will fall under my children’s might. If you step aside, I shall grant you a quick painless death.”
Adjusting her hand hold, slippery with sweat and blood on Riptide, Rhea raised her sword into the air, pointed towards Gaea. “You’ll never get Olympus Gaea! The demigods and Gods will defeat you!”
“Perhaps,” laughed Gaea, green eyes alight with manic. “But will they defeat me before I kill you?”
“What?” gasped Rhea, looking down as a tree branch speared through her stomach. She floundered, looking up at Gaea with uncomprehending eyes, before she slumped over the branch as the fiery pain of being impaled hit her.
Blood ran down her lips when she coughed. She could feel a pull behind her chest as her life force drained away, leaving for the Underworld. “I’ll die here Gaea, but so will you.”
Gaea cackled, head thrown back. With her eyes off Rhea, the daughter of Poseidon reached into her pocket and uncorked a vial, blowing the dust inside in the direction of her great-grandmother.
The primordial tossed her head down and sneered, looking Rhea in the eyes. " I’m immortal you stupid, argh!” grunted Gaea. Sinking to her knees, the Gaea glared at Rhea, teeth gritted. “What. Did. You. Do?”
Smirking, Rhea shook her head. “Everything dies, even immortals. I just speed your time up.”
“You had Kronos’s time dust? Clever girl,” growled Gaea as her human body crumbled into dirt. “I’ll be back.”
With the tree branch turning to dust, Rhea fell to the ground, letting out a grunt as she jostled her injury. She turned her head, seeking out her father.
“Rhea!” roared Poseidon, meeting her eyes as he swatted his opponents away. He launched forwards, desperate to reach his daughter across the battlefield. It took five giants to restrain him as he watched his daughter die in front of his eyes.
Rhea looked her father in the eyes, seeing his anguish, pain, love and apology. Too weak to keep her eyes open, she closed them as her blood pooled underneath her. Forgive me Mum, Father, Annabeth, Grover. I love you.
----------
Groaning, Rhea lifted her hands to her aching head. She opened her eyes, immediately frowning. “What the?”
The last thing she remembered she was being on a field with her fellow demigods by her side, not on the beach next to an ocean. Lifting her head and looking around, Rhea’s eyes widened, catching sight of four men dressed in armor and a woman. Reaching for the nearest weapon, which happened to be a broken spear, she rolled to her feet, pointing the weapon at the strangers. “Who are you? Where am I?”
The woman stepped forward, hands held in front of her, expression pleading. “I don’t understand the language you’re speaking, Lamb.”
“Why are they speaking Ancient Greek?” muttered Rhea to herself. She took another look at the people assembled in front of her.
Three of the men were wearing authentic Classical Spartan armour, while the other man was wearing mercenary armour and the woman was wearing a red chiton, with slits on the side. Their clothing and armor seemed to fit in with the time period Classical Greece, not to mention their accents.
Confusion seized Rhea, causing her to tighten her grip on the spear. Had she somehow gone back in time? Did Kronos’s dust malfunction? But why does she remember dying?
Taking a moment to switch her brain from English to Greek, Rhea asked again, “Who are you? Where am I?”
The woman took a shaky breath in, tears in her eyes. “You don’t remember us Lamb?”
Slowly, Rhea shook her head. The woman was beginning to give her the creeps. “No. Should I?” Though they did seem kind of familiar when Rhea thought about it.
Standing next to the woman, was a man older, (no younger?) than her. He gave Rhea the impression of chaos, fighting, bloodshed, torn apart, innocent, childish laughter.
Tearing her eyes away from him, Rhea took in the next man. He exuded the sense of fire, peace, battlefield, smiles, laughter, anguish, whirlwind.
Confused, Rhea turned to the third man. Flashes of anger, betrayal, annoyance and protectiveness assaulted her.
Slightly freaked out, Rhea faced the last man. He radiated the feelings of betrayal, darkness, sparring, strict, love. A sliver of memory imbeds itself in her mind. “Pater, please! No, no!”
Twitching, Rhea rubs her pounding forehead with her free hand. She looked the older man in the eyes as it dawns on her. “You…. you threw me off a cliff!”
Everyone assembled in front of her twitch, with the old man, mercenary and woman full on body flinching.
“That’s the first thing she remembers?” the third man muttered.
The old man held out a hand, expression pained. “Kassandra-”
“Kassandra?” interrupted Rhea.
“Your name,” answered the woman.
Shaking her head, Rhea is about to reply that her name isn’t Kassandra when she looks at the woman, taking a breath as love, longing, surprise, family come to the front of her mind. Something possessed her to ask, “Mater?”
The woman, Mater, walked towards Rhea and stood in front of her, cupping her face with tears in her eyes. “Oh I thought I had lost you again Kassandra, my daughter after just getting you back.”
Rhea now Kassandra (It’s like a jigsaw piece finally clicking into place) nodded, looking lost. She hadn’t completely accepted that this woman was her mother, but then why was she familiar? “Getting me back?”
“I thought you had died Lamb, but you appeared before me on Naxos, as if you were a dream.”
“Right,” mumbled Kassandra, head spinning. She pulled away from her Mater, ignoring her hesitation. “Who’s that?” she asked, pointing towards the first man.
The man stepped forward, smiling hesitantly. “I’m Alexios, your brother.”
Kassandra studied him, trying to remember anything about him. “You,” she started, the memory clearing as she continued. “I held you as a baby and you burbled when I rocked you.”
Alexios’s eyes widened as he flushed, looking away.
“My baby brother. I called you-”
“Mikrós Lýkos,” breathed Alexios in wonder. “I always remembered that, but I didn’t know who said it. It stuck with me while growing up with the Cult.”
“The Cult?” frowned Kassandra.
Good mood evaporating, Alexios shook his head, turning away.
Heeding his plea, Kassandra turned to the second man. He greeted her with an amused smile, bowing with his right fist over his heart. “Brasidas of Sparta.”
“Of Sparta? Does that mean you were born in Sparta?”
“Yes,” answered Brasidas. He paused, as if waiting for her to remember something about him.
All that came to her mind was, “A burning warehouse.”
Raising an eyebrow, Brasidas nodded. “That’s where we first met.”
“Why would I be in a burning warehouse? Shouldn’t I have avoided a burning warehouse?” asked Kassandra incredulously.
“You were the one who set it alight,” chuckled Brasidas.
“Hmmph,” snorted Kassandra, turning away from him.
The next man stood in front of her, arms crossed with a slight sneer of pride. “General Stentor of Sparta. Adopted son of the Wolf of Sparta.”
Kassandra raised an eyebrow, hand on her hip. “And that’s meant to mean something to me?”
Stentor spluttered, his arrogant stance deflating. “I wouldn't expect a mercenary like you who abandoned Sparta would know the pride of being the Wolf’s son,” he sniffed.
“Right,” drawled Kassandra. “Well, all I remember about you is annoyance.”
Alexios snorted, covering his face as he shacked with laughter.
The old man stayed where he was, hands behind his back. “I am Nikolaos of Sparta. Wolf of Sparta.... and your Pater.”
“Step-Pater,” corrected Kassandra automatically.
“.......Yes I suppose,” agreed Nikolaos hesitantly.
“He’s your Pater, Kassandra, the one who raised you, and I am Myrrine, your Mater,” pleaded Myrrine.
“Kassandra raised herself after you abandoned her!” grumbled Alexios.
Flinching back from the sudden yell, Kassandra held the forgotten spear in front of her, eyes flicking between Alexios and Myrrine, unsure.
“And Kassandra can decide for herself if Nikolaos is her Pater or not,” mediated Brasidas. “But for now, let’s inform Kassandra of what Aletheia spoke about.”
Myrrine shot Brasidas a thankful smile, turning back to Kassandra. “The Isu woman said you’d be forgetful when you wake up. Your brain is processing two different sets of memory.”
Two sets of memory? As in, “Reincarnation,” muttered Kassandra. She tilted her head, contemplatively. “But why do I remember my death?” Kassandra dismissed the keening noise that followed her words. “I should be in the underworld with my friends and family, not wherever this is. Surely the Fates and Uncle Hades could have given me the rest I deserve.”
Stentor frowned, “Uncles Hades?”
Myrrine shakes her head. “I am thankful that the Fates decided to lead your soul to me all those many years ago. Otherwise I would have never had the chance to meet my beautiful daughter." She paused and then shook her head, hands catching Kassandra’s own. “Enough of that. I wish to know who you were before you came into this world.”
Kassandra smiled wistfully, looking at the ocean as she sat down on the bed roll she woke up on. Her mother followed her, settling down next to her daughter. It’s just the two of them, looking into each other's eyes as the rest of the world fades away.
“I was born Rhea Amphitrite Jackson. Where I come from…. came from, you don’t include your place of birth in your name. If I did, I would be Rhea Amphitrite Jackson of New York.”
“Where is this New York?” asked Brasidas, interested.
“It’s across the oceans, a far distant land. If we’re in Classical Greece then... Has there been a war or is one going on right now?”
“Sparta is at war against Athens,” informed Nikolaos.
“When did it start?”
“9 years ago.”
Kassandra nodded, “Then it must be 1422 right now. New York is a state in the country America. America won't be discovered until two thousand years in the future. I would be born around two thousand and five hundred years in the future.”
Myrrine's eyes widening was the only sign portraying her surprise, “So far in the future?”
“What’s the future like?” smiled Brasidas.
“Does Sparta win the war?” asked Stentor.
“Yes. Very different. I can’t answer that,” replied Kassandra.
“But you know,” stated Nikolaos.
Looking across at her (What was he to her?) Pater, Kassandra nodded. “I can’t tell you cause who knows what sort of butterfly effects would occur from the war changing.”
Brasidas raised an eyebrow. “Butterfly effect?”
“The butterfly effect is the belief that small changes can impact the future significantly. It’s explained with the flap of the butterfly's wings can cause a tornado halfway around the world. Essentially, if I tell you how the war finishes and you change your decisions based on that, anything could happen. A worse war could erupt because history was played with or a devastating plague could appear,” finished Kasandra, shrugging helplessly.
Everyone frowned at that, remembering Athens.
“Besides I don’t even know if I’ve reincarnated into the past or another world. Any information I know might be useless.”
“Another world?” deadpanned Alexios. This was beginning to sound ludicrous.
“The Multiverse theory which would stump you more than the Butterfly Effect theory,” sighed Kassandra.
Myrrine laughed. “You’re beginning to sound like Sokrates with his unusual way of thinking Lamb.”
Kassandra made a pained sound, shaking her head. “I do not want to get into a theoretical discussion with Sokrates. He would make me doubt and rethink every decision I’ve ever made.”
“You remember him then?” asked Brasidas, surprised. Why would she remember an Athenian philosopher more than her own family?
Kassandra’s eyes widened. “I’ve met him?”
“I believe you call him a friend,” answered Myrrine, smiling mischievously.
“I don’t remember him from this time. But in the future he’s a famous philosopher. Ever since Annabeth introduced me to famous Ancient Greek people, I’ve always wanted to meet Aristophanes, his plays made me laugh, Herodotos, the father of history; Annabeth would be so jealous that I got to meet him and not her and Hippokrates, the father of medicine. People in the future still use his teaching methods and his oath is called the Hippocratic oath!” exclaimed Kasandra in awe.
“Not Alkibiades? His talents are known far and wide,” teased Brasidas. He frowned, feeling his heart lurch, but brushed it off as Kassandra spoke.
“No! He’s a playboy and I don’t know where his loyalties lie,” she shuddered.
“I thought he was loyal to Athens,” frowned Stentor.
Kassandra froze, giggling hesitantly. “Forget I said anything!”
Unconvinced, Stentor nodded.
“You’ve met all of them Lamb,” laughed Myrrine.
“I wish I could remember them,” pouted Kassandra. “Anyway, I’m getting off track. Everyone has a last name and most people have a middle name. I think people began taking last names because towns and cities were becoming too populated to easily remember people with the same name. One of my ancestors was called the son of a Jack, therefore Jackson.”
Stentor spoke up, grimacing. “And your….. Middle name?”
“Mum wanted to honour the Greek Gods with my first name Rhea and the oceans with my middle name Amphitrite. Growing up, I always wondered why Mum named me that. We weren’t particularly religious, though Mum would celebrate all the Greek holidays. It wasn’t until I was twelve that I found out why Mum named me after the Greek Gods.”
“Where was your Pater?” asked Nikolaos, frowning.
“He was never around," shrugged Kassandra. "Mum told me he wasn’t dead, but lost at sea and if he could be with me, he would."
Nikolaos nodded. “And his name?”
Kassandra hesitated, knowing how people worshipped the Gods in this time and if she told someone she was a demigod they might believe her, which wasn’t a bad thing, but she didn’t want to be fawned over. She got enough of that for being the savior of Olympus “Poseidon, God of the seas, earthquakes, storms, and horses.”
“Your Pater was a God?” scoffed Stentor.
“You may want to take that back, some people could be insulted,” warned Kassandra. She glanced at the ocean, hiding a smirk. Discreetly, she flicked her fingers, controlling the water to travel from the ocean to over Stentor's head.
“Who would be insulted? You?” disdain dripped from Stentor’s words. He spluttered as he was drenched in sea water.
Above his head was a globe of ocean water that started to twist into different shapes, flying around the camp.
“By the Gods,” whispered Brasidas, stupefied as he stared above Stentor's head. He then laughed, looking down at Kasandra with delight. “You’re a demigod! A daughter of Poseidon!”
Alexios snigged at Stentor's predicament. “I always thought of myself as a demigod, but you’re the real demigod between us Kassandra.”
Stentor paled, remembering all the times he had angered Kassandra. If she knew she was a demigod then, he had no doubt that he would be dead, resting with the sharks.
Nikolaos only sucked in a breath, staring at the water dumbfoundedly.
“I’m still Kassandra, still your daughter. My life as Rhea ended when I died,” pleaded Kasandra, unnerved by her Mater’s silence.
“You’ll always be my daughter Kassandra,” smiled Myrrine lovingly, cupping Kassandra’s cheeks. “I should have known Lamb,” she chuckled, shaking her head fondly. “I had to bribe you with a bath to finish your chores and the only way to get you to leave was if I promised to tell you your favourite story of how Poseidon and Athena competed to become Athens main deity. You would always correct me If I had forgotten essential details.”
Kassandra giggled wetly with a fond smile on her face. “My best friend Annabeth is…. was a daughter of Athena. She would never let me live it down if I got the details between our parents competition wrong.”
“Don’t Poseidon and Athena have a rivalry. How were you friends with her daughter?” asked Alexios curiously.
Smirking, Kassandra answered. “When I first met Annabeth, she hated me. But I grew on her, like a barnacle she would say. I called her Wise Girl and she called me Seaweed Brain. It was us against the world. Until I left her," she finished, throat clogged by tears.
Myrrine scooped Kassandra into her arms, changing the conversation. “What was your Mater like?”
Kassandra looked over towards the ocean, eyes far way, lost in memories. “Mum, Sally Jackson is…. was an awesome mum. She tried her best to be there for me all the time. She was still proud of me even when I started fights and failed school. At bedtime, she would regale me with tales of Greek heroes and ideas for the novel she wanted to write. Every year we could make it, we would go to Montauk, a town next to the ocean. We would eat blue food, while Mum told me about Father.”
“She sounds lovely Kassandra,” confronted Myrrine.
“She was,” whispered Kassandra, sobbing softly. Talking about her friends and family brought her to tears. Did Gaea and the monsters kill them? Or were they mourning her? Remembering all the times they shared with tears in their eyes, like she was? She would never go back. Never taste her Mum's blue chocolate chip cookies, snuggle with her while they watched scary movies, trade insults with Annabeth who would always win, sit in nature with Grover or see her Father's proud smile.
"I miss them," Kassandra admitted softly, trying to stifle her tears.
Not sure if her words were welcomed from a near stranger, Myrrine bundled Kassandra into her arms, brushing her daughter's hair and whispered sweet nothings against her hair.
After a few minutes, the two parted. Looking towards the sky, Myrrine startled, seeing the sun’s position. The whole day had nearly passed by since Kassandra had collapsed. She turned back to Kassandra, hugging her once again, before letting go. “It’s been a long day Lamb, you should rest before we ride back to Sparta and inform King Archidamus of our mission’s success. Hopefully, you will remember more while you sleep. We’ll talk tomorrow.”
“Yes Mater,” yawned Kassandra at the mention of sleep. She settled down on the bed roll she had been sitting on, looking up towards the slowly darkening sky. She could hear Myrrine joining Nikolaos and talking quietly, as the others cleaned up camp, before settling down for sleep themselves.
Kassandra had been thrust into the first day of her new life and so far it had gone well. She couldn’t help but wonder why the Fates had led her to be reincarnated with her memories intact. This world also felt wrong, as if something was missing.
Yawning, and closing her eyes, Kassandra resolved to find the answers to her questions that cropped up through her conversations with her family, tomorrow.