Free Oppression by Jessica Therrien Page A

of me. It was the only reaction I could process. “You can’t be serious.”
    Even through my laughter, his expression didn’t falter. “Indeed I am.”
    “I don’t mean to be rude,” I said frankly, “but that is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.”
    There was not a million to one chance that I was this prophecy savior. I knew that for sure. There was no way someone as young and emotionally unstable as myself could make such an impact.
    “You do not have to accept the prophecy for it to be true.”
    “You can’t possibly believe that I’m going to change your world.”
    “It is inevitable.”
    “Maybe for someone else,” I disagreed. “I don’t know anything about . . . anything. I don’t know your world. You have the wrong girl, Professor.”
    “I assure you, no.”
    I stared into his crazy blue eyes that seemed to have faded with age. They were honest, believing, sincere, and that scared me. “I wouldn’t even know what to do. Besides, I’ve got nothing against . . . whoever it is you feel is your enemy.”
    “The Council,” he answered, “and you will.”
    How could I take this crazy looking man so seriously? He had obviously lost his sense of reality years ago. “Look, I’ve got to get to class,” I said, looking for a way out. I stood and headed for the door without being properly excused. “It was really . . . nice talking to you though.” What else could I say?
    “Remember what I told you,” he continued, talking to me through his open door as I slunk away. “Your destiny will find you. Oh, and Origins is in room 22A.”
    I didn’t look back as I charged down the empty hall, and when I found the right door, I let my shoulders relax a little, trying to forget the conversation I’d just endured.
    I walked into the classroom over thirty minutes late, right in the middle of a lecture.
    “. . . we have to be responsible. The choices we make affect more than just ourselves.” Despite my tardiness, the professor gave me a look of pleasant surprise. The strange attention made me squirm, and I avoided looking directly at him out of embarrassment. Luckily William was sitting toward the back next to an empty seat, and I dove into it, desperate to avoid curious eyes.
    Dr. Nickel was written on the blackboard in elegant cursive. He was a tall, handsome man with clean-cut gray hair and a strong build for his age. His charismatic smile reached the back of the room, clearly expressing his love for teaching, and I recognized him immediately. I knew I’d seen him before, but couldn’t think where.
    “We have a new student,” the professor announced, causing the entire class to zero in on me.
    I raised my hand, acknowledging the group, but couldn’t find my words.
    “I know we’re all familiar with our ancestry, but I would like to run through a quick overview for Elyse, just to bring her up to speed with the class.” Apparently he knew me as well.
    The students redirected their attention to Dr. Nickel, and I slumped lower in my chair.
    “What is your first impression of the word Myth? Anybody? The first word that comes to mind?”
    “Legend.”
    “Imaginary.”
    “A story.”
    “Yes, a story,” Dr. Nickel said through grinning lips. “The Greek word from which we derive the word mythology actually means ‘story-telling,’ but in truth, mythology is often described as being thought to be true by a particular culture. In the case of Greek mythology, it was true, very true, to the humans who were aware of the existence of our ancestors. The Greek mythology of today arose from a particular point in time when our ancestors were less concerned about the consequences of integrating with human society. Most of what was known to be true at the time has been embellished beyond fact, but there are still parts of it that mark significant events in our history. As we all know, the Trojan War, which has now become more of an interesting fable, was the reason for our decision to become