Who Am I?: The Rise of Bright Siren: Part 1

By Arnonda Anthony

Have you ever wondered where your place in the world is? That is the one question that's bothered Aria for years. After growing up with a psychotic mother and an abusive twin sister, who could blame her? It's a dangerous world, especially If you were born superhuman. Blessed and burdened by the power of her siren song and the control over water, what's a girl to do? After running away from her destiny once, Aria must team up with her two closest friends and a former enemy to help save her one true love and keep the fate of humanity safe. It will take all her bravery and the support from her friends to keep the tides of evil at bay. Will Aria learn to accept herself as the hero she is, or will her powers be the end of her and the end for humanity?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Newman Springs Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Nov 8, 2021
• ISBN: 9781636927763

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Who Am I?

The Rise of Bright Siren: Part 1

Arnonda Anthony

Copyright © 2021 Arnonda Anthony

All rights reserved

First Edition

NEWMAN SPRINGS PUBLISHING

320 Broad Street

Red Bank, NJ 07701

First originally published by Newman Springs Publishing 2021

ISBN 978-1-63692-775-6 (Paperback)

ISBN 978-1-63692-776-3 (Digital)

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

The Awakening

The Reveal

The Trip

The Blossom

The Warning

The Search

The Answer

The Battle Begins

Acknowledgments

First of all, I would like to thank God above for guiding me through every obstacle of my life thus far. My mother, for her love and support and for pushing me to make new decisions; to my father, for giving me a reason to strive forward and to work harder; my friends, you all have continued to teach me to work out of my comfort zone and do more for myself. I am blessed to have all of you in my life.

Finally, I would like to thank the wonderfully talented Jeaniene Frost, the creator of The Night Prince series. I myself am a Dracula fan, and I absolutely love your rendition of this character. This series alone has helped inspire the storyline for this book, and I hope fans of my own will enjoy my stories as much as I enjoy reading yours.

Thank you!

The Awakening

I shoot up from the ground, gasping for air. My vision dark and hazy. It finally comes into focus: I’m in an alley; the sky above me is dark. No stars, the only lights in the sky are from the mountain-high skyscrapers and the helicopters scanning the grounds below. I have no clue of my whereabouts or how I have ended up here in the first place. The only thing that sticks out is the short memory of me falling out a window. Well, that explains…absolutely nothing, I think to myself.

My phone buzzes, interrupting my thoughts. I pull it from my pocket. The name Averie was lit up on the screen. I press the green button and answer with a shaky voice, Hello.

Arie. She screeches in a worried panic. Where the hell are you?

I wipe my face with one hand. What?

She continues, Arie, you have another performance back here at Rockefeller Center in ten minutes!

I look down at my watch; it was 11:50 p.m. That’s when it comes back to me—I’m a singer. A new local artist in the city of New York, whose popularity is surging fast. The reason for that is pretty simple but is a well-kept secret I’ve hidden from everyone I’ve become close to since I moved to the city. Even Averie, my manager and closest friend. She’s guided me through the processes of becoming successful and even helped me get used to living in the states when I first got here a year ago.

Hello? Arie! Averie screams.

Sorry, Averie. I’ll be there as soon as possible.

Good! she spouts, relieved.

The phone call ends with a click. I get up, slowly gaining my balance and walk off quickly into the brightly lit street. Immediately I spot the crowd of fans and marquee lights waving in the sky. Brushing myself off, I stroll up the street until I see the black curtains guarded by security. Still, a bit disoriented, I hobble over.

The guard takes notice of me, his brows lining up in concern. Miss Arie? Are you okay? Surprised he knew my stage name, I follow his eyes down and see my backstage pass with my name and picture on it.

I smile reassuringly. Yeah, I’m fine. I just need to get backstage.

The guard smiles, looking over his shoulder, and yells to his partner, Aye, Ben. Get her to the main stage ASAP! He nods, grabs my arm, then leads me to the main stage through the abundance of staff.

We finally make it when I spot her, pacing frantically at the stage entrance is Averie. A tall brown Hispanic girl with long, thick hair. She looks up, sees me, and rushes over in a panic. There you are! Are you trying to give me a heart attack? she says with worry in her voice. We’ll talk about this little incident later. Get her to hair and makeup! she shouts to the staff.

I look at her in confusion. Wait, what— Before I could finish my question, I’m swarmed with hair-and-makeup girls frantically working their magic to fix me up. Three minutes later, they’re done.

Okay, you’ve one-minute, let’s go, she says, pushing me toward the stage door.

Wait, but what incident were you talking about? I ask frantically.

She snaps frustratingly, We’ll talk about it later. Now hurry and get your ass on stage! I take a couple of steps up the platform and look back at Averie. She smiles and gestures for me to keep going.

Break a leg up there! she shouts before the roar of the crowd bellows to the line of my intro.

Ladies and gentlemen, you love her, you adore her. I give you, Arie! On cue, I walk on stage. The crowd screams even louder. Like a switch had just clicked inside me, I step to the mic and look the keyboardist in the eye to start. I hear the click of two drumsticks, then a pound of the drums and cymbals, on rhythm the guitarist and the keyboard player chime in. Using no thoughts, just actions, I begin to sing, rocking to the beat of the syncopated rhythm.

I smile as the lyrics trickle in my throat and out of my mouth in an enchanting hypnotic melody. That’s when I notice it, glancing at the screen housing my face, my eyes. My eyes are starting to glow a bright blue. I continue to sing as the key changes to a higher note. My eyes are now glowing an eerie blue. I look down at the fans.

Their eyes are now glued to me, unpleasant smiles as if they are mesmerized by me. The song’s rhythm slows until it comes to an end. I look up at the screen again; my eyes are back to their normal dark brown. The crowd goes wild. I smile, hiding the worry, wave goodbye, then make haste to the exit. I rush down the platform and backstage. Averie nearly tackles me, smiling from ear to ear.

Arie! That was awesome! You never fail to impress.

Great, we need to talk, now! I say in a mild panic.

Okay, okay. We can talk back at the apartment, she says calmly.

I grab her hand and walk through the crowd of staff and off the lot. Whoa, where’s the fire? Arie? Averie says, concern in her voice. I say nothing and just keep my pace. I only get a few feet before Averie breaks free. Arie? Why are you in such a hurry?

I turn to face her and frantically spout, There’s something I need to talk to you about…just not here. And it can’t wait.

She nods. Okay, just calm down. I’ll call the car to come around. Averie takes her phone and dials a number. Hey, Lore? Can you come around to the left shoulder of lot 1? Cool, make it quick. Thanks. She hangs up the phone.

It takes about twenty minutes, but Averie and I make it back to our apartment complex. When I first moved to New York, Averie got me my own apartment. I later found a job aside from the singing gig to pay for it.

I close the door behind us. Averie walks into the living room and turns to me, brows twisted in a confused and concerned manner. So what is so important that couldn’t wait?

I pause, trying to find a way to start. I’ve got to tell her, I just don’t know how to approach it, I think to myself. I first need to ask you, what incident were you referring to when we were backstage?

She scratches her head. Oh, you were kinda wigging out a bit about something not being right after you watched your last performance on social media. Then you just left suddenly before your midnight encore.

That’s when it hits me; the memory starts to playback in pieces. I had a small panic attack. "Can you remember what I was so frantic about?

Averie pauses for a moment. Yeah, you kept mentioning the eyes. Or something like that.

That’s it! The eyes, I think to myself.

Arie, what’s going on with you?

I pause then let out a long sigh. Averie, you might want to sit down. There’s something I have to tell you.

Averie walks back toward the couch. Lay it on me.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath. Okay. We’ve known each other for about a year now, and you’ve done so much for me in that short time, but…I haven’t been perfectly honest with you.

She raises an eyebrow. Uh-huh.

I’m not what you think I am. She gestures for me to continue. First, my real name is Aria, not Arie… Second…I…I…

Averie leans forward. Yes?

I’m…a siren!

The Reveal

You’re what? Averie laughs out loud.

I’m a siren, I say again.

She continues to laugh, shooting up from the couch and holding my shoulder for support. This is a joke, right?

No, it’s not. I am a siren. I pout.

She continues to snicker. Okay, okay.

I sigh. You don’t believe me.

I didn’t say that, she says, smiling profusely.

I guess I’ll just have to prove it to you.

What? How?

Focusing my sight on her, I start to sing a slow melody. Instantly, Averie is mesmerized. Continuing to sing my magic spell, I tell her to hop in place. In an instant, she does just that. I then tell her to get on her hands and knees; she obeys. I stop singing, and just like that, Averie is back to normal.

What the…how did I get on the… she pauses and looks up at me in utter shock. What did you do? she sputters in fear.

I told you, I’m a siren. Averie stands to her feet and looks me over, then does something I did not expect. She smiles.

This is awesome!

I’m sorry, what? I stare in confusion.

You’re a siren, that mythical creature?

Well, sort of, I’m more of a megahuman. With the same siren abilities.

She looks me over for a moment. You do look like a normal human.

I snort. Will you stop it!

Okay, okay. So what else can you do?

I glance back for a second Well, at first—

At first? she interrupts.

Yeah, I had super strength, speed, smarts, the ability to breath underwater, and, of course, the siren song.

Okay, and I’m sure that’s not even close to everything.

I hesitate. Well…

Come on, spit it out! she shouts in excitement.

I sigh, walk into my bedroom, then grab a box out from under my bed. Joining Averie back in the living room, she cocks her head to the side. What’s that? I open the box. A luminous blue stone brightens the room. Wow. She gawks.

I encountered this stone before I ran away from home. It somehow enhanced my powers. When I first touched this stone, it gave me the ability to control water.

Averie’s eyes grow wide. No kidding! Girl, you are something out of a movie.

Yeah, and that’s why I’m not really comfortable singing anymore. I thought I would be able to keep my powers under control, but I can’t.

Are you kidding? You’re a star.

Yeah, for the wrong reasons, I interrupt. The only reason my popularity is growing is because of my siren spell. If and when people listen, they’re automatically mesmerized. If I kept this going, I could take over the entire country, and that’s not what I want… That’s the last thing that I want.

I begin to tear up. Averie places a hand on my shoulder. Arie, there’s something more to this, isn’t there? I look into her eyes.

I start to speak, but I’m interrupted by her phone. ¿Bueno? Hey Mic. I know, but I’m kinda in the middle of something. Can this wait?… Fine, okay, okay, I’ll be there soon. Bye. She looks back at me. I’m sorry, Arie. We’ll have to pick this back up later.

She starts to head for the door. I quickly grab her arm. Averie, you cannot tell anyone what you’ve learned tonight. You have to promise me you won’t speak a word of this to anyone. Do you understand?

Averie grabs both my hands reassuringly Yes, Arie, I would never put you in any danger. From just a year, I’ve grown to see you as a little sister. I promise I won’t tell a soul. She hugs me tight. We’ll talk more tomorrow. Get some sleep. She shuts the door behind her.

She sees me as a little sister. Is this the kind of compassion I’m supposed to get? I shake my head and walk into my room, putting the box on the nightstand.

I stare out my window looking out at the moon, thinking back to the moment I woke in the alley. I rub my head exasperated, stroll into the bathroom, and shower for a bit. As I dry myself off, I continue to force the memory back before blacking out. That’s when another flash hits me—the memory of a figure grabbing me and forcing me inside that building. Someone grabbed me, but I can’t remember who or what? I say to myself, a bit shaken. Was it a stalker or a murderer? Either way, the plan to get rid of me didn’t work. I turn off the bathroom light and wrap myself in a towel. I remember there was still more to it before I fell out of that window.

I finally slide into my pj’s, then throw away my clothes. I hear a ding of something hitting the floor. I turn and see something tiny sparkling on the floor. Picking it up, I notice it’s a piece of broken jewelry with a wing and a tail engraved on it. This looks familiar, only I can’t quite place it? I yawn heavily. Looking up at the clock, it’s after 2:00 a.m. Setting aside the piece of jewelry, I slump into bed and immediately dose off.

The next day I awake to the aroma of cinnamon pancakes, bacon, and eggs being cooked and a low humming coming from the kitchen. Jumping out of bed, through the doorway, I spot Averie’s backside. She’s cooking food in my kitchen. Uh, what are you doing here? I say in a groggy voice.

She looks my way, smiling sweetly. Good morning, sleepyhead. You were going through a lot yesterday so I took the liberty of cooking you breakfast.

Staring at her in confusion for a moment, I look down at the food she prepared. Smiling graciously, I reply, Thanks, Averie, but you didn’t have to do this.

She waves her hand. It’s no trouble, girly. Now go on and grab a seat, I’ll make us some plates.

Still a bit in shock, I do what she says. I pop a squat in my normal chair, and she places a plate piled high with food in front of me and sits down across from me.

So how’d you sleep last night? Are you feeling any better?

I shake my head. Yeah, I’m a lot calmer than yesterday.

Good, so why don’t we pick up where we left off. Tell me about your family. My breath catches in my throat. I squeeze my fork hard, nearly crushing it with my iron grip.

Where to begin? Well…I guess I could start with my mother. Averie nods.

She was the reason I got my powers.

What do you mean?

I sigh. "Years ago,