Iridescence

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

ARTEMIS

No matter how far I ran, I couldn't calm my mind. I knew what the implications of my meeting with Faith were, but I wasn't ready to accept them. It just wasn't possible that Faith and Tana were the same person.

I couldn't deny that Faith reminded me of my best friend who'd perished so long ago. They had a similar sense of humor, and just like Faith, Tana had always flirted with me any chance she got. Nothing ever came of it, of course. I was never the sort to have relationships or pursue romance. Honestly, I couldn't say for sure what my feelings were for Tana. I never really let myself consider it before she died, and afterward, what was the point? She was gone. I'd lost her.

I was feeling too many things at once. Even being in the woods was failing to clear my mind, something that worried me because that had never happened before. I returned to Olympus and went in search of someone who might be able to put things in perspective for me.

Athena was training some of the younger warrior deities when I arrived. She seemed to notice my distress immediately. She excused herself and came toward me.

"Are you alright, Artemis?" She asked in concern.

"I'm not sure," I admitted. "Athena, a situation has just presented itself and I desperately need clarity."

She guided me to a more secluded area so we could have privacy before she said, "Go on. Tell me what troubles you."

"I know you are aware of the girls I am currently working with."

"Yes. It's a magnificent undertaking and I can think of no one better to guide such strong young women."

I ignored the compliment. "Apollo recently realized one of the girls is the reincarnation of his lost beloved."

Athena's eyes widened in surprise. "Kleia?" She asked in disbelief. "That's impossible. She was completely destroyed."

"That is what we believed, yes... However, Morpheus kept a small shard of her soul within the dream realm, and eventually, that part of her incarnated in the mortal realm."

"Is Apollo certain?"

"He is."

"Has anyone told Aether or Polyhymnia?"

"Not yet. Apollo intended to tell Eliza the truth about her soul today. I haven't seen him since."

"This is excellent news, Artemis. I assume it is not what has you so concerned."

"I believe my brother is correct, and Eliza is the reincarnation of Kleia. I had not considered that my other girls might be special in similar ways." I hesitated. "Athena, one of the girls appears to have knowledge only Tana would possess."

Athena looked at me with sympathy in her eyes. "You were so young when you lost her. I know it traumatized you as nothing else ever has."

"It made me stronger, as do all of my struggles."

"Do you believe this girl is Tana?"

"She burned to ash. Morpheus was not present to save any part of her. I don't understand how it could be possible, yet she does remind me of her. I never let myself see it before, but now I cannot deny it."

"If Tana has returned, you must protect her. She will be targeted."

"I can't be sure it's her. It's impossible, Athena."

"Only one will be able to detect the truth for certain, Artemis. If you require proof, you must seek her out."

"Psyche," I guessed.

"Precisely. She is the Goddess of the Soul. If she cannot get a read on the origins of your girls, no one can."

"Thank you, Athena." I paused. "If it turns out to be the truth, what should I do?"

"Everything in your power, Artemis. If lost deities are truly returning to us, we must protect them with all that we possess."

"I understand," I replied solemnly. I walked away, determined to find Psyche and get some answers out of her. Instead, I ran into someone else.

"I sensed a broken heart," Aphrodite said in surprise. "I did not expect it to belong to you."

Although certain modern mythologies believe Aphrodite to be my father's daughter, the older texts are correct. Her father is Uranus. She is not my sister, and thank Goddess for that, because I can only tolerate her in small doses. It's not that she's a horrible person, but she's so focused on love and romance that she hardly ever has time for anything else. She gets on my last nerve, especially since I have no patience for such frivolous things as romance.

"Nonsense," I replied. "Excuse me. I have something I must do."

Aphrodite was used to me dismissing her, but this time, she hesitated. "Artemis... Sometimes, it helps to talk to someone outside of the situation."

I frowned. I didn't want to have this conversation with her, but the truth was, Aphrodite was the biggest expert on love in the universe. I knew she could help me make sense of my own emotions in this situation.

"Do you remember Tana?" I asked.

"The Fire Nymph you were always running around with? Of course I do. Helios was so devastated when he lost her," Aphrodite replied.

"I need to know something, Aphrodite." I nearly choked on the words as I asked, "Did you pick up anything between us?"

"Oh, Artemis, finally!" Aphrodite cried in delight, clapping her hands together enthusiastically.

"I beg your pardon?"

"I never thought you would come to me for romantic advice!"

"I never said I was doing that."

"Oh, come on. I'd have needed to be blind not to see it. You were still young and didn't understand what was blossoming, but your feelings for her were quite clear to me." She paused, looking genuinely sympathetic as she added, "After Tana perished, it seemed rude to bring it up, so I never called you on it. I assumed you'd get there on your own eventually."

"You think I had feelings for her other than friendship?"

"I think the two of you would have made wonderful consorts once you grew up a bit. It really is a shame you lost her before you could explore your feelings."

"Consorts? That's ridiculous. We were friends, Aphrodite. I do not have a consort, nor do I want one."

"You truly have remarkable powers of denial, Artemis."

I rolled my eyes. "I should have known better than to talk to you. You think everyone is in love. Excuse me." I walked away before she could say anything else.

I continued my search for Psyche. Regardless of anything else, I still needed to know if my girls were the reincarnations of fallen Goddesses. If it wasn't just Eliza, then it changed everything, and this battle was going to be much bigger than I'd ever imagined.

"You couldn't have seen this coming and warned me, Apollo?" I mumbled in annoyance. What was the point of having a brother who was a God of Prophecy if he didn't see such major details?

You're being too hard on him, I scolded myself. I knew the Universe only allowed prophets to see what they were meant to, and nothing more. He couldn't help it if he didn't see the entire picture at once, even if it was annoying.

I found Psyche sitting in a field looking down on the mortals. She did that a lot. "Psyche... I'm sorry to disturb you, but I need to ask you something," I began.

"Of course, Artemis," she replied with a warm smile. "What can I do for you?"

"I need you to look into the souls of six girls in the mortal realm."

"Well, that is my area of expertise. Who are the girls?"

"Eliza Alden, Krissy Berry, Faith Edwards..." I tried to keep all emotion out of my voice even as I said Faith's name. "Emily Kang, Jenna Ramos, and Vanessa Singh."

Psyche nodded. Her eyes began to glow a bit as she looked toward the mortal realm. She looked surprised as she said, "They're Goddesses... How unexpected."

"Tell me about it," I mumbled. "Can you tell me which ones they are?" I asked louder.

"Yes... Eliza was called Kleia." She paused thoughtfully. "Krissy was named Rydia... Faith's name was Tana..."

If I were mortal, my heart might have stopped. Instead, my chest simply grew tight as I realized my dead best friend had reincarnated and promptly resumed flirting with me shamelessly. I took a deep breath and forced myself to focus as Psyche continued speaking.

"Emily was Anastasia... Jenna was Alexia. And, finally, Vanessa was Theadora," Psyche said.

I shook my head, my mind blown. "All of them are lost Goddesses believed to have fallen and been destroyed during the war against Chaos," I explained. Psyche hadn't been around for some of the earlier parts of the war. She'd started out her existence as a mortal.

"Their souls are beginning to awaken, Artemis," Psyche informed me. "Until they fully understand their pasts, they will be in terrible danger."

"Thank you, Psyche," I replied. "I'll take care of them."

I walked away and knew I needed to find my brother. He needed to know this just as much as I did. I went in search of him and realized he wasn't in the realm of the Gods. I went back to the mortal realm and found him standing outside of Eliza's house.

"Brother," I began.

He looked up at me. "Sister! I didn't expect to see you here," he replied.

"What are you doing outside of Eliza's house?"

"Something strange happened earlier. Her home was under attack. I stayed until her parents returned, and I couldn't bear to actually leave. I was too worried, so I decided to keep watch over her and Krissy tonight from out here."

"What happened?"

Apollo explained the attack. I sensed Hecate's magic surrounding the house. At least he'd had the sense to ask for help.

"Eliza is definitely Kleia," I informed him. "I paid a visit to Psyche."

"You went to see Psyche just to find that out for me? I'm touched. I was pretty sure already, but it is nice to have it confirmed," he replied.

"It wasn't just about you and Kleia..." I hesitated. "There's more, Apollo."

"More? Do tell."

"All of the girls are reincarnations of supposedly destroyed Goddesses."

He blinked at me for a moment as he tried to process that. "Are you serious?" He finally asked.

"Why would I joke about something like this?"

"You're right. That's something Hermes would do, not you." He shook his head. "Wow... Who else is back, Artemis?"

I started with the ones that would be less traumatic to discuss. "Alexia," I began. "Goddess of Earth and War, and sister of Nike."

"Jenna?" He guessed.

"Jenna," I confirmed. "The daughter of Gaia and Pallas... Which explains why Gaia, Nike, and Ares are all fighting to claim her as theirs."

"Incredible... Go on."

"Rydia, daughter of Tethys and Hermes, Goddess of Water and Messengers."

"Krissy, I assume?"

"Correct."

"She's our niece? Actually, that makes sense. Hermes is the most hyperactive entity I've ever met, and Rydia was just like him in that regard. She could never sit still."

"I remember. Next, we have not one, but two daughters of Morpheus." I left out their mother's name, as Morpheus never shared their true lineage with outsiders and I couldn't be certain who she had been.

Apollo gasped. "They're both back?" He asked.

"It appears that Emily was Anastasia, and Vanessa was Theadora."

"Well, that certainly explains Vanessa's powers, but what about Emily? Her affinity is for Spirit, and she's much darker than Ana was."

"Hades told us Emily has been through a lot in her young life. I assume it changed her. Perhaps we can help her find some peace if she learns to embrace Anastasia."

Apollo nodded thoughtfully. "I don't want to be the one who has to tell Morpheus about this. He's been working with Vanessa for all this time, yet he never realized who she was."

"Their souls have been hidden and locked away until now. Her powers may have been unlocked, but it wouldn't have been obvious that she was his daughter."

"Right... So, what about Faith, Artemis? Where did our delightful firebug come from?"

I forced myself to speak calmly. "She was Tana," I replied tonelessly.

Apollo stared at me for several moments. Finally, he asked, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," I said firmly.

"Artemis... I know what she meant to you. I, more than anyone else, saw the way the two of you bonded. Be honest with me. I'm here for you."

I sighed. "I don't know, Apollo. I have no idea what to think about any of this. The only thing I do know is that we need to protect these girls now more than ever. They aren't ready to face the threats that will come their way once the truth comes out."

"We'll protect them... And prepare them."

"How, Apollo? How do we prepare a bunch of mortal girls for a battle meant for Goddesses? They're still children. Preparing them to be warriors with magical affinities was one thing, but to ask them to wield the magic of the deities is a bit much."

"These girls are strong, Artemis. I believe in them. You should, too."

"I do... I just know this is going to be a difficult path for them."

He paused thoughtfully. "Sister... I know how you must feel. I'm still trying to process the fact that my Kleia has returned to me. If you should need to talk..."

"I'm fine, Apollo," I insisted. "I must focus on helping the girls now. Nothing else matters."

"You're allowed to have feelings about this, Artemis."

"I am a warrior. I don't have time to concern myself with feelings. This is about preparing the girls for battle."

He sighed, but didn't push the issue further. We sat together and began to discuss how we were going to tell the girls the truth. There was precious little time to waste.