10th Muse: Blade of Medusa. Darren G. Davis
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10th Muse
Blade of
Medusa
WRITTEN BY
THOMAS J. MISURACA
and DARREN G. DAVIS
BLUEWATER PRODUCTIONS
Washington
For A.J. & Linda Whelton.
– Tom
This book is dedicated to my personal
muses Emma and Brett Davis.
They are truly my daily inspiration.
And to my brother Scott, without whom,
mythology would still be Greek to me.
– Darren
Copyright ©2006 Bluewater Productions. All Rights Reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part, or stored in a
retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission
of the publisher.
Edited by Johnny Lowe
Story Editor: Darren G. Davis
Cover by: Clint Hillinski
C O N T E N T S
P R O L O G U E
• V •
C H A P T E R
ONE
• 1 •
TWO
• 16 •
THREE
• 23 •
FOUR
• 36 •
FIVE
• 42 •
SIX
• 54 •
• I •
SEVEN
• 62 •
EIGHT
• 70 •
NINE
• 80 •
TEN
• 85 •
ELEVEN
• 94 •
TWELVE
• 99 •
THIRTEEN
• 111 •
FOURTEEN
• 124 •
• II •
FIFTEEN
• 135 •
SIXTEEN
• 148 •
SEVENTEEN
• 152 •
EIGHTEEN
• 157 •
NINETEEN
• 168 •
TWENTY
• 178 •
TWENTY-ONE
• 186 •
TWENTY-TWO
• 196 •
• III •
TWENTY-THREE
• 201 •
TWENTY-FOUR
• 204 •
EPILOGUE
• 210 •
• IV •
PROLOGUE
Just over one hundred years ago, an American named Ethel
Rogers participated in an archeological dig on the Greek
Islands. After one exhausting but successful day, she neverthe-
less continued working into the night enthusiastically recording
the large number of artifacts the team had unearthed.
Many enticing pieces of jewelry, eating utensils, and body
armor had been recovered — but three specific items stood out
from the rest.
The first was a shield. Though obviously buried for hun-
dreds of years, it was as sturdy and shiny as if it had been forged
only yesterday.
• V •
T H O M A S J . M I S U R A C A
The second item was a human skull, and it had been found
on top of the shield, as if the shield had been used as a serving
tray to display the skull.
The third item was a sword. Like the shield, the sword did
not appear to have suffered any damage for having been buried
for so long. It was so shiny, Ethel caught her reflection in it. She
stared into her own eyes.
A pair of fiery red eyes stared back.
That night, the three artifacts vanished.
• V I •
CHAPTER
1
You know that feeling you get at the end of the school
year? When the days grow more beautiful by the moment,
and the last thing you want to do is stay inside, especially if that
inside is a school? That’s how Emma Sonnet felt this morning.
Emma did enjoy school, however. She was keen on learn-
ing, especially art and history. Math threw her for a loop now
and then, but she had to admit that she liked the challenge. Best
of all though, school was the place where she was guaranteed to
see her friends on a daily basis.
Today was different from most days at the end of the year.
Today was field trip day, something Emma felt she much need-
ed and deserved. This meant she and her classmates got to get
• 1 •
T H O M A S J . M I S U R A C A
out of school for a while. Even though school was almost out
for the summer anyway, any time away from the grind was a
treat.
They were going to a San Francisco art museum called the
Legion of Honor. This didn’t thrill every student in the group,
but it was a place Emma loved to visit.
Plus, her two best friends were there: Dawn and Brett. The
three had been friends since freshman year, and they shared
many of the same classes and the same sense of humor. But