The fog carried her away until Mira reappeared in front of an opulent building. The golden inlaid marble courtyard was small but elegantly decorated. Red flowers swirled around carved pillars to the grand entrance of the temple. A group of priestesses strolled around as she fell to her knees and screamed in frustration.
“Oh dear!” One of the older priestesses ran cover her, “What happened?”
“Is the goddess-soul in?” Her words were emotionless.
“It’s past her bedtime,” The woman looked at her with sad eyes, “But I can see what I can do. Please, let’s get you inside and get you clothed.”
The priestess wrapped a thin evening shawl around Mira to hide her from prying eyes. She ushered the frazzled woman inside and had her sit on a pew in the main perish. Mira waited patiently as the woman brought her a bundle of fabrics to wrap herself in. She fashioned a toga and thanked the priestess. A small set of footsteps approached her from behind, but she was too exhausted to look when she knew who it was.
“You finally came to visit,” The young goddess yawned.
“I found myself here,” She tugged at her makeshift dress.
“Did Skymara talk to you?” The young girl jumped onto the pew next to her, “Is that why you’re here?”
Mira simply stared at the blind girl. The child knew the entire time and waited for the elves to tell her. Yet another liar in her life.
“Why me?”
Talia hugged her before she looked over her shoulder at the gathering group, “Can I be alone with her? I’ll be safe, I promise.”
Talia sat down and snuggled up next to Mira as she spoke. The girl waited until the room was cleared before their discussion began.
“Do you know a lot about the Goddess? She-we- me?” Talia puckered her lips and tried to find the words.
“She might be helpful,” Mira offered.
“She was a lot like you. She wanted to protect her friends. She made a deal so she could. I think She regretted it for a while, but She made everyone safer.”
“What do you mean?”
The girl lifted a finger to point at a scenic painting. A woman dressed in white pet a white dragon while they were surrounded by lovely flowers and animals.
“Everyone says that she and Alcante were lovers,” The girl shook her head, “But that’s not true. We just never corrected it. They were just the first to bond their souls together. He wanted to kill his brother to take his place as King of Beasts. She wanted to save her people from the creatures that enslaved and slaughtered them.”
Mira’s hand habitually went to the stone, only to realize it was gone. She could count a handful of times she took off the necklace. Ever since she learned it belonged to her mother, she always kept it on. Even the few times Isaan tried to snatch it from her, she fought against him despite the pain her enthrallment brand caused her. Panic shot through her until she remembered taking it off.
“She made a deal. That’s why She accepted Encante’s curse,” Talia hugged her arm and yawned, “She knew that Encante would bond to another one day –once he had something to fight for again. He was a good and fair ruler to his people. She knew that Alcante wouldn’t be strong enough to stop her when she cast him back down from the heavens.”
“Stop her from what?”
“The Goddess is dying,” The girl whispered and anxiously rubbed her hands, “She’s spent eons keeping souls away from the void. She’s been fighting Alcante to keep him there. She’s grown very weak, and he’s grown too hungry.”
“That’s why she wants another god? To stop him?”
“Yes. She broke her soul into shard to send down here to guide the next god. She wants the prophetesses to find someone worthy,” Talia poked Mira’s side playfully, “She wants to save those in the void as well.”
“What do you mean?”
“She’s always picked the worst to feed the mad dragon,” She rubbed the bandages on her eyes, “But people like Calosa and Sapphire slip through. She knows it’s not fair to them, but she cannot reach them. Not without letting him out.”
Mira rested her head on top of the young goddess. The girl yawned and laid her head in her lap and made herself comfortable. She needed something more concrete to focus on. Then, the thought occurred to her.
“Why must I fulfill the prophecy?”
“Wh—what?” The prophetess blinked.
“I do not want to be a part of it. I have no desire. Why can’t I pass this on to someone else?” Her amber eyes glared down at the bandages on the girl’s face, “There are surely more qualified to—”
“That’s not how it works,” Talia shook her head, “It has to be you. You were prophesized for this and are the only one capable. It has to be you. It’s you or him.”
Less than a year ago she was banned from most knowledge of the goddess. Now, she was to become one. She didn’t want to believe it, but her upbringing made sense. If the two dragons knew what she would become, then they would do their best to keep the prophecy from happening. Encante did his job to protect her to kill his brother.
“How do your powers work?” Mira changed the subject.
“Goddess is weak and could find this girl quickly. She was born blind,” She tugged at the bandages, “Many don’t believe I’m a prophetess because of that. But I could see colors when Talia’s shard awoke in me. I think she knew you’d be more trusting.”
“That didn’t answer my question.”
“I can touch someone and hear the voices in their mind. Theirs, their past lives. Wants, fears, worries,” Talia touched Mira’s face and the bandages over her eyes glowed a golden white, “Usually, the voices are loud. They sing, laugh, cry, and scream. I have to focus but they tell me what I want to know.”
“Why did you cry when you checked mine?”
“It’s very quiet,” She whispered, “I never heard someone so quiet inside. The voices are whispery and hard to hear. It makes me sad.”
“What did you just hear?”
“You have few worries. About friends, about your future,” She smiled and patted Mira’s face, “Not even I know the answer to those questions. Besides that, you are scared of the quiet too. I can hear the voices panic about it.”
“How do I stop myself from slipping away?” Mira ran her fingers through the girl’s hair, “I feel this anger churning in me and it’s becoming overwhelming. I don’t know how much longer I can control it.”
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“Maybe your voices are quiet because you numbed yourself to them.”
Mira furrowed her brow. She didn’t think of it like that. She couldn’t remember ever thinking strongly about something before fighting Isaan. Before then, there were only subtle things that made her think of breaking away from her former master. Now she just felt like an animal backed into a corner that needed to fight when she was overwhelmed.
“What do you mean?” Mira asked calmly.
“When did you start feel things?” Talia held up a finger to pause her, “Not just the mean whispers or the bad dreams. When do you remember becoming you and not Isaan’s thrall?”
“I was fighting a monster in a small village. Everything was burning down around me as I cut the thing down. A woman cried for me to help her find any survivors. When her legs were crushed. She didn’t make it.”
Talia paused, “What happened?”
“She wasn’t scared of what I was, in my other form. Even in her final moments, she asked me to take care of her children. It was her dying wish,” Mira lowered her head, “I wanted to feel that strongly connected to anything like she was. It seemed magical.”
“You saw her distress, her love for another, her strength,” Talia nodded, “And you wanted that.”
“I grew close with her children. They were my first friends. And I regret getting that attached,” She pulled at her hair, “I want to be numb again. I can control myself if I am numb. I would be able to handle all this.”
“You may have once been a weapon,” She titled her head, “But you are much more now. You are your own person.”
Mira frowned at that, “How else am I expected to keep this power from exploding?”
“If Encante combines your souls, then you would be able to use his power to control it,” She frowned, “I don’t know if he would do it again. He loved your mother dearly. More and longer than most have loved another.”
“The power I pull from him feels like fire in my veins. It’s agonizing and intoxicating,” Mira sighed, “Would I even be able to handle it?”
“Right now, your body is like water and you’re both fish,” The girl drew a square in the air, “You’re both swimming in small puddle and it’s hard to move. You’re both fighting for room. If he bonded with you, your water would be bigger than the ocean. You could swim freely, grow, and create a school of power between you. Instead of fighting for space, you both would flourish.”
Mira tapped her chin in thought. She knew that if she gave control to Encante, they would form into the wraith under his control. She wondered what it would be like if they both controlled the form. They had practiced the mist around her forming the wraith so they both moved, but nothing worked as well as when one led the other. It was something they planned to practice on the long voyage to Agrowl.
Mira knew very little about bonding souls as she was never permitted to learn. She searched her thoughts for any more questions she may have.
“If I ascend, would I be able to pull my mother from the void?”
“That is the Goddess’s hope,” Talia stretched and laid her head in her lap, “We hope you’ll be able to help those lost find their way back to us.”
Mira thought it odd that she had the demeanor of a young child but had ancient wisdom. She wondered if the little girl was still in there with the shard of the Goddess’s soul.
She yawned, “Do you want to have a sleep over? It’s past my bedtime and I’m tired.”
She chuckled and recognized the child was inside the girl’s body, “I do not have anywhere else to stay where people won’t look for me.”
“Your friends worry about you. There is nothing wrong with that.”
Mira leaned her head back against the pew and sighed, “There is no other option for me, is there?”
“It will be too late when you know the answer,” Talia patted her arm, “I don’t want it to be too late for you. It would be so sad.”
Mira did not find that comforting. She sat in the perish with the little goddess and just relaxed her muscles. She wondered if the black sludge from her lungs was causing her nightmares to worsen. Her body ached from the lurching in her dreams.
“Do you need some?” The girl bit her finger to draw blood, “I hear the hurt voices.”
“It will heal me,” She touched the bloody finger with her own.
The red sucked into her own skin. The explosion of energy from the girl’s offering sent tremors across her body. The exhaustion deep in her bones eased as it spread through her. She pulled her finger when she saw the golden light from under the bandages.
“Are you listening now?”
“Yes. You are quiet compared to many others,” The girl grinned, “I know you like the quiet as well. We don’t need to talk. I can listen to the voices. They’ll tell me anything I need to know.”
The two sat in a comfortable silence for a while. Mira wondered if she could save her mother –save everyone that was sent to the void. If that was her destiny, how could she keep her friends safe? How could she have the little cozy home that Jonen promised her?
“If it happens…” Mira hesitated, “I won’t live, will I?”
The girl pursed her lips. The silence was the answer to the question.
“I see. My fate is to die in the end,” She said matter-of-factly, “That is unfortunate.”
“Mine is as well,” She smiled sadly, “For all the shards must return to a goddess.”
Mira mindlessly played with the girl’s hair as she thought of the nice dream Jonen made so tangible. She liked curling up next to him by the crackling fireplace. She liked how he held her, how he treated her so tenderly, and how he loved her. Any time she was with him, she wasn’t under any pressure to perform for a crowd or fight. It was just them and she loved that.
“You must remember a few things, Miradash,” Talia said, “Dragons do not know love. They do not understand relationships. They understand possessions and boundaries.”
“Why are you telling me this?” She frowned.
“You care about him,” She commented, “There is a difference between –”
“I don’t see how that’s any of your concern,” She cut the girl off.
She sighed, “If you chose to bond with him in one way or another, I can lead the ceremony myself before you leave.”
“I don’t think that’s necessary.”
As she felt someone step into the temple, Mira turned to see Jonen sigh in relief.
“Thank the Goddess,” He walked towards her, “I found you!”
Something was wrong. This wasn’t the handsome man she had laid with earlier in the night. This wasn’t her knight. It was close, but it wasn’t him. Her scent wasn’t on him, and his own scent was weak. Anger fueled her and she stood over Talia protectively. The girl rubbed sleepily at the bandages over her eyes.
“Stop,” Mira announced.
“What? Mira, it’s me!” He motioned to himself.
“What have you done to him?” She stared into the emerald eyes of the fake Jonen.
He noticed her glaring at him and held up his hands defensively, “What’s wrong?”
Her hand twitched as she summoned the glaive, “I will kill you if you’ve harmed him.”
The false Jonen sighed and held his face in his hands, “Fine, you caught me.”
Mira relaxed as Em moved their hands away. The elf’s emerald eyes contrasted against the snow-white skin and hair. They bowed formally to Mira and Talia.
“Apologies for the scare, Lady Mira. I’m surprised you noticed the difference. Most people cannot if I make an identical copy,” They smiled, “And good evening, Prophetess Talia.”
“Hi, Emmy!” She yawned.
“We’ve been searching for you everywhere,” They spoke softly, “I understand that the situation earlier was… intense. I do not blame you for running. But, we need to return to the others and reunite you with Encante.”
“Can Mira spend the night?” Prophetess Talia popped up to peak over the pew, “Please? I want a sleepover!”
“I have to at least tell them where you are.”
“No,” Her cold world hung in the air.
“Okay,” They sighed, “Can I at least watch over the temple to ensure your safety?”
“No,” Mira pinched her brow, “Bring me clothes for tomorrow, then leave.”
Em scratched their head inquisitively, “Do you want to know who you are battling in tomorrow’s tournament?”
“Does it matter?”
The elf pursed their lips and shook their head. As Em left the temple, they walked along the streets until they found a fluffy cat perched on a bar top. Em chuckled and scratched between its ears.
“Tell my sister that she’s safe,” The elf fiddled with the charm on its collar, “And that everyone can come back.”
The cat meowed loudly and pawed at the odd marble on its collar. The light pink fur didn’t show as much in the dark night. It pranced along the streets and let the dwarves that noticed it scratch it’s back. It hissed at the other animals that approached it. After a few minutes, a smaller human woman snatched the cat up and held it like a baby in her arms. The feline meowed loudly, and she shushed it.
“Aren’t you a cute little thing?” Val chuckled, “Are you supposed to be what I’m looking for?”
Her fingers tickled its belly and the cat purred happily. She grabbed the white ribbon collar with the trinket attached.
“Does that mean she’s been found? Come on, let’s go tell the others.”
Val tried to hold the fluffy cat in her arms, but it soon wriggled away with a yowling bite and fled into a nearby alley. She went to chase after it, but saw another person approach her.
“Oh, you’re Aisling, correct?”
“Yes,” The woman lowered her hood, “Bragnoun told me to find you here.”
“Val,” She smiled and held her hand out.
The dark flower mark stood out against her skin. The dark-skinned woman shook her hand proudly and grinned.
“It’s lovely to meet you.”
“Congratulations on getting to the next spot in the tournament.”
“Ah yes,” Aisling chuckled, “I’m against Grandy. Brangnoun wants to know how I should approach.”
“We haven’t seen her since dinner. We’re actually looking for her now. She wanted to be alone.”
“He said she would be hard to find. Just let me know before the fight, then,” Aisling smiled, “I’m not a powerful mage, but I can still do some stuff.”
“I’m not sure what exactly the queen wants from this if I’m being honest. She’s pinning the fighters against each other?”
“I think you’re not thinking like a leader,” Aisling pulled her hood up, “What better way to know your enemies than to see how they fight?”