Arine

“How do we get down there?”

“There,” Eli pointed toward the left side of the cliff, “stairs.”

Slowly we both made our way down, never letting go of each other's hand. It wasn’t like we needed to hold hands or anything, but the stairs were old, wet, and partly destroyed. One step at a time, we slowly descended further and further down. While the sun was burning on the surface, not only halfway through and yet it became chillingly cold. Eli and I moved closer together and I quickly cast a spell to surround us with a heating bubble. 

As we got closer to the ground we started to hear… sounds. At first, we were sure it had to be monsters or ghosts or wherever but then... “Look, ” Eli said, “are those people?”

It was hard to believe, but the sound we heard… It was the sound of normal town’s life. People having small talk with each other, buying wares, and going about their day. At first, only distanced shapes from afar but the closer we got to the city, the more human than became.

“Didn’t mom say something about no one living in this city anymore?”

“Uhu.” Was all I could say as the sight took me in. I expected a ghost town, devoid of life with crawling, soul eating demons waiting around each corner but instead we got a town full of life, with kids playing in the streets, their parents in joyful conversations and…

“Eli, don’t!” I grabbed her as she was about to pet one of the dogs running around. It was that moment I realized what was going on in here.

“This isn't real, those are the memories of the people who lived here.”

“The memories of the people who lived here?” Eli paused for a moment before it hit her too, “Sleepers.”

“Yeah. We should be careful not to touch anything.”

“I don't like this.”

“Me neither, but look,” I pointed toward the giant shrine, looming over the town, “almost there.”

Not touching anything turned out to be more difficult than it sounded. Those walking memories were everywhere and while they didn’t interact with us, it was hard to predict what they would do next. In the end, we decided it was too dangerous to follow the main street, it was just too busy and we took a detour over some of the back streets which were significantly less populated.  

Lost in thought about how our meeting with the goddess would go, if we would meet her at all, and if she was even able to help us, a pull on my sleeve brought me back to reality.

“Did you hear that?” Eli said as she stepped closer to me, “This doesn't sound like the rest of the memories here.”

My body started to tense and I pulled Eli in even closer. If there really was something here other than the sleepers, I wasn’t about to let her even one inch away from me. We both stopped our breath and listened for anything unusual. Nothing. Absolute silence. Not even the faint sounds of the past people's lives, replaying over and over again.

...

“There,” Eli whispered, her eyes wide open, “it sounds familiar.”

“I’ve heard this before too.” A quiet soul clenching shriek, as if begging to be killed.

Our eyes met and we both knew what was waiting for us. “Do you think we’re safe here?” 

“No, I don’t. And if there’s one here, there’s about to be more.”

With every passing minute, the shrieks became louder, more intense until it wasn't only one, but two. Then three and four. We were making steady progress, walking as quietly, as quickly as possible but we couldn’t differentiate the horrific noises anymore. There were just too many. The closer we got to the center of the city, the more intense they became..

When we finally arrived at the city square, still hiding in one of the back alleys, we got our first look at what was awaiting us. Horribly disfigured beings, from human-animal hybrids to merged woodified beings only barely recognizable as to what they once were. Flying Torsors with missing limbs and heads rolling around, covered in eyes and mouths. It was painful to even look at, harder even to describe. Eli and I pressed ourselves against the wall. Her heartbeat loud enough for me to hear.

“Fuck,” Eli said, as tears were swelling up her eyes, “I, I… how...” I pressed my hand against her mouth, my vision as blurry as her’s must have been when I looked into her eyes. 

Trying as hard as possible not to get a panic attack and calm down, “We'll find a way.” I had to gasp for air a few times, “we’ll find a way okay? The shrine is directly behind those things.” 

“We’ll get this okay? Nothing bad will happen. I promised. Okay?” Eli nodded a few times, and once I was sure she wouldn’t freak out anymore, I removed my hand, “we just have to think of something.” 

Easier said than done but we hadn’t that many options either. “Fighting those things is out of the question. But we can’t sneak past them either.” This was bad, really bad. Because we couldn't turn back. Mom and Mr. Sirus were mysteriously gone, not to speak of the dense fog surrounding the cliff. The only chance we had to really do anything was to get into contact with Zalla’s.

I’ve lost track of time, just sitting there, contemplating our next move. But there wasn’t much, our only option was to rush right through and hope for a miracle. I was starting to get desperate when Eli had an Idea.

“Okay Ari, this might sound insane but I think this might be our only chance.” I couldn’t say her choice of words reassured me in any way, the fact that she sat opposite to me and took both my hands into hers didn’t make it any better. “You remember what happened at the Tournament?” Oh, oh no.

“Eli, are you sure? That wasn’t me, that...that, I don’t know what happened there. I just lost control and she took over, everything went so fast and, and...”

“Stop, Ari, stop,” she said as she squeezed my hands, “I know, look I know this can’t be easier for you but this might be our only chance.”

“Ever since this incident, your left eye, it changed color because of her magic, hasn’t it? A part of her is in you and we can use this to our advantage.”

I heard what Eli said, I just couldn’t process it. My mind wandered back to the last time I used her damned magic. How I was trapped in this realm and nearly blew myself off. Not even speaking of the image of Friza, how her body lay limp in this giant crater, covered in blood. I tried to forget it, but of course, it’ll always come back at me, no matter how hard I tried, no matter what I do, Zeres would always be a part of me now.

“Hey, Ari, are you okay?”

“Uhm, sorry, what did you say?”

“Look, if we can use Zere’s magic, to blast a way through the church, it might be enough to get a reaction from Zallas.”

“Huh, that... could work.”

We talked our plan through a few more times before we took our final preparations. I wasn’t too sure how to activate and separate Zeres magic from mine but with Eli’s help I think I managed to switch to her element. I think, because I didn’t dare use it, least of all we needed more attention from the monsters just waiting to taste our flesh. In the end, it was a risky plan, after all, if I didn’t manage to do this right, we’d be dead. 

The only good thing about this plan was that I didn’t need to control it, no need for any kind of form or shape, just released the raw destructive magic from a goddess, banished centuries ago and hope for the best.

“Okay, three, two, one, goo!” Leaving our cover, me first and Eli close behind. The second we entered the street, the growling stopped and all their attention was on us. Without a second thought, I focused my strength, remembering how it felt when I was at the tournament, and building up as much of my magic reserves as I possibly could. With every step, the monster drew closer and when their stench reached my nose, I snapped and it happened.

Like a thunderbolt, it left my body. I felt the air surrounding us become thicker and thicker, in the fraction of a second multiple shock waves hit in front of us, leaving nothing but purple mist. And we ran, ran like our life depended on it, till we hit the shrine. Crashing against the door with our full body weight and stumbling into it’s inside.

To our horror, we had to realize that while our plan worked and we successfully made it to the shrine, the blasted remains of the monsters started to assemble again, crawling our way.

“Okay, and now?” Eli asked, completely out of breath and unbelieving of what was happening outside.

“I... don’t know, maybe-.... maybe praying for a miracle?” It was no use. No matter how hard I tried to not lose my composure, I was a wreck. I wanted to be strong for her, to protect her but that seemed to be impossible now. And it was all my fault, again. Soon her uncontrollable sobs weren’t the only ones halling through the great entrance.

As the monster got closer and closer, so did we.

“Ari, there’s something I want… no, I need to tell you,” she said as she looked at me with her face barely recognizable, red and swollen from all the crying.

There was a moment of silence between us, staring at each other, coming ever so close with our final moments sealed. “Ari, I… I l-”

“Fear not my children, for this is a sanctuary of life.” A voice echoed through the shrine before a white light consumed us. When it was gone, so were we. Instead of a shrine, surrounded by horribly disfigured remains of what was once human, we found ourselves in a garden. A fountain in the middle, spewing crystal clear water, a sheer labyrinth of flowers around us, displaying everything mother nature had to offer. And then we saw her, in the distance the silhouette of a woman flowing in the air. Her green hair reaching down to her knees and her dress touching the ground wherever her feet did not.

Slowly she made her way towards us and the closer she came, the larger she got. Until she was right before us, right under her heavenly gate. “You look like her, and I can sense her in you, and yet you are not her.” Her voice was booming in my head. I could see her lips moving but no sound came out as the word echoed loud and powerful in my head.

Mesmerized by her appearance, I could not answer. A blinding light started to emerge from her body and slowly she shrunk until she was only a head taller than me. 

Ignoring Eli, she stepped even closer until I could feel her warmth just standing there. 

Without saying a word, she lifted her hand and started to stroke my check, “Oh sister, how have I missed you.”

“I am sorry, for imprisoning you, I hope you will forgive me one day.” She was speaking to me and yet she wasn’t. Slowly stroking my cheek as she spoke I understood she wasn’t talking to me but to the part of Zere’s that took hold of my body.

“Now as for you,” she said and the trance I found myself in was gone. It felt like waking up from a long slumber and now I stood there, face to face with a goddess, “will you give me your hand?”

I did as she told me and all my memories, from my earliest childhood to Jenna's kidnapping and everything after, it all flew through my body, through my hand, and into her.

“Oh, you poor child. You have suffered greatly but this is not why you are here. What did you desire? Why did you search for this place?” 

It wasn't all that much easier to speak, even after the trance was lifted. Her beauty, her power, and just her aura, everything about her was impressive if not outright intimidating. Hours must have passed before my lips started moving again and still, she stood there, waiting, without a trace of annoyance. Is this how the other priestesses must have felt when in contact with their respective goddesses?

“I… I, we. We came for her, not for me.” I said, a shaky finger pointing toward Eli, who still looked like she was trapped inside a dream.

The goddess, Zalla’s didn’t say a word when she turned around and took a closer look at Eli. “Oh, how could I have missed it.” It echoed in my head again and Eli too was out of trance.

“This is strange.” She moved closer to Eli, repeating the same gesture she did with me, “I feel our connection and yet, you are not you. What connects you to this world is gone, replaced with a deep inner turmoil.”

Lowering herself onto her knees, she looked up towards Eli, took both her hand, and, “will you allow me to learn of your fate?”

No response, instead Eli just nodded. This time, not being the one whose memories were being pulled through but witnessing it, a low white veil started to form around Eli before it was absorbed into Zalla’s body. As soon as the veil was completely gone, her expression changed. Where she appears to be thoughtful with a hint of curiosity before, the goddess's face now showed nothing but regret.

“I fear to tell you that your trouble was without reward as I cannot help you.”

I couldn't believe it, we have gotten so far only for our one hope to be destroyed like that? This couldn’t be happening, I rushed towards Eli as she was about to collapse. Only once had I seen her this hopeless, directly after Jenna sucked the life right out of her.

“Why? Why...why...” was all she said as she covered her face, to stop the tears from falling. 

“Is there really nothing you can do?” Eli was right, why? This was Zallas, the Goddess of creation and she couldn’t do a damn thing? How was this possible, how was this fair? “Aren’t you a goddess? Aren’t you supposed to help us, to help her?! Isn’t she the gate that connects your realm to the human world?!” As soon as it came, my anger was gone, replaced by the same hopelessness that I’ve now been so accustomed to.

“It pains my heart to see you like this. But as her body was drained of magic, our bond was weakened. I cannot replace and link what is not there, I’m sorry.”

“Nothing… this all was for nothing. Is there really no way?” A long, oppressive silence lay upon us before Zallas took Eli’s hand once again. She helped her stand up and washed away some tears.

“I may not be able to reverse what was done to you, but... I can give you the body you have lost.”

Another wall of silence, but this time, one of shock. Before any of us could react, she continued, “It is not without risk and I have to warn you now. Before, your body adapted the form it desired since birth, formed and held together by the magic that was flowing through you.”

“With it gone, so were the changes. I can form it anew but be warned, as this divine interference can never be undone. ” There was a seriousness to her voice that I felt in my bones, “If you take this offer, not even I will be able to change your body to its current form ever again.”

“I don’t care, I just want to be me again, with or without magic. I never was so sure of anything in my life.”

“So be it.” She said and led Eli into the fountain. “Lay down and relax as this will take some time.”

She didn’t exaggerate when she said ‘take some time’ as I was sitting here just waiting for them to finish for what felt like hours. I’m sure that technically it was probably a lot less all with different time flows in different realms and what not. And I was so happy for Eli that she would at least get to be herself again but that didn’t help the conflicted feelings that were thawing in me.

What would I have done if I was in Eli’s place? If I had the chance to get my old life back, see my parents and siblings again, my old friends, my school, everyone? But what would I lose? Eli and Kate and Lyn and Riley and Mr. Sirus and all the other people I met. Could I give up magic? Return to my old mundane life? Would I ever get another chance at being a girl? 

I had no real or easy answers to any of those questions. Maybe it would have been different if I had never met Eli but... I did. And when I heard her finally get up I was glad it wasn’t a decision I needed to make right now.

Slowly the water fell from her face, her clothes still drenched but it was nothing short of a miracle when I saw her long, green, untamed hair reaching past her shoulder. I couldn't help myself but cry happy tears.

“Eli, you...you..” it was impossible to finish as she tackled me in an instant, knocking us both down.

“Oh, Ari. I’m so, so happy.” And I was too as she buried her head deeper into my chest, her smile still clearly visible from the side of her head. “I..I thought… that I… never… and then when she said… that she couldn’t… and...”

“Hey, it’s okay.” There was still so much ahead of us, but in this brief moment, everything was calm and right and just as it should be. “I’m so happy I finally have you back.”

With a smirk and tearful face, I heard her muffle into my chest, “Well, technically I was never gone.”

“You know what I mean.”

“You weren’t supposed to hear that.” she pouted a bit too convincingly, “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be, I’m just so happy you're back to your old self.”

We didn’t say anything just sitting there holding each other. I must have been the most peaceful moment I had yet since coming to this world and I hoped it could stay like this forever. Just Eli and I, forever.

Lexyna

I'm soo glad it's finally over and Eli got her body back. I'm sorry it took me this long to get to this point. Also no cliffhanger in this chapter for a change.