3 Royalty

The sea crashed against the rocky beach, a sure sign of an incoming storm. In fact, it was a storm that Calliope was waiting for. A storm would be the perfect way to get out of her family's palace, get away from the hubbub of the palace. Her family and the servants had all been bubbling with excitement for the past few weeks, but Calliope didn't quite know why.

It was all just a bit too unnerving for her.

But with a storm coming, Calliope could easily sneak out of the palace and find herself a little spot to hide in for a while to get away.

Of course, being the princess of Athens, it was often hard to find sanctuary. Many people would do anything to touch the skin of the princess of Athens—or at least, what was left of it.

The Roman Empire had stripped most Greek city-states of their royal families and kingdoms and liberties. Freedoms were ignored, taxes were collected, dreams were crushed. Young men were forced into the Roman legions. Calliope's own brother, Aegeus, had been pressed into the Roman legions two years ago. That was why the throne (or rather, what was left of it) had been placed solely on Calliope's shoulders when in the past it would have gone to the male child of the king and queen.

It was a burden Calliope did not desire.

The sound of the sea crashing on the rocky beach brought Calliope back to reality, out of her thoughts. She frowned at the dark grey mass that had appeared on the horizon. She wished the storm would hurry up a little...

She sighed and moved to turn away from the open window she'd been sitting at, on the ledge.

Just then, a loud thunder clapped resonated through the air and a bright, jagged bolt of lightning flashed across the sky, scarring Calliope's eyes, the flash still visible on her retina after she blinked.

Calliope lunged to slam the window closed. Her heart had started beating a mile a minute—though not with fear, as many would expect. Rather, her heart thumped in her chest with great excitement.

Calliope had never been the kind of girl to stay still. She was always searching, always moving, always trying to learn everything she could. Calliope was a girl after Athena's own heart, many said, a girl who thirsted for knowledge but thought nothing of love.

It was not that Calliope did not want to one day fall in love. It was rather that she had seen it go sour far too many times and knew she must be careful with her heart. So she was not afraid of showing the world who she truly was—a learner, a girl ready to stop at nothing—if that was what it would take to find someone who would willingly accept her for who she was, someone who would not attempt to change her when she did something they did not like.

In fact, Calliope was such like Athena that the priests often let Calliope spend her time alone in Athena's temple.

That's when it dawned on Calliope.

She could take refuge from her family in the Parthenon.