Iridescence

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

KRISSY

I woke up with Eliza curled in my arms. After the others had returned to their bodies, we'd stayed asleep. Morpheus had allowed us to stay together, and we'd slept until after eleven in the morning. I think we both needed it.

She stirred, and for just a moment, she seemed okay. Then, it was clear she remembered what had happened. She looked at me sadly and asked, "It was real, wasn't it? My mom's dead and my dad..." She shook her head.

"It was real, Liz," I confirmed gently. "I'm so sorry."

"We should check in with Abby. You never sleep like this. She's probably worried."

I didn't call her on changing the subject. I understood why she needed to do it. Eliza was trying her hardest not to have a nervous breakdown. I wasn't about to shove her into one.

We walked down to the kitchen. Abby looked like she hadn't slept at all, but she put on a bright smile when she saw us.

"I'll make breakfast," she said before looking at the time. "Or lunch, if you prefer."

"Let's skip the middle man and order a pizza," I suggested.

"Pizza sounds great," Abby agreed. "Is that okay with you, Liz?"

"Of course," Eliza replied numbly.

"Why don't you girls sit down and relax? I'll call the pizza place now."

I led Eliza into the living room, figuring my aunt could handle ordering lunch unsupervised. After all, we had the pizza place on speed dial.

Eliza didn't say anything unless I asked her questions. Her replies were short, polite, and completely devoid of emotion. I'd never seen her so detached.

"Liz... If you need to talk, I'm here," I said.

"I know, Kris," she replied. "I just don't know what to say."

That seemed fair, considering everything that had happened. I decided to back off. If going on autopilot helped Eliza get through this, I figured I could allow it for a little while.

We were still in the living room when Abby let out a cry of horror. "Snake!" She shouted. "Snake in the house! Snake. In. The. House!"

Did I forget to mention that my aunt was terrified of snakes? Eliza and I ran toward the kitchen and saw the slithering creature that had cornered her.

Abby was holding a broom in front of her like it was her only lifeline. Maybe it would have been enough, except two more snakes came out of the walls. Abby shrieked and swatted the one closest to her away with the broom.

A dozen more snakes manifested out of thin air. "Liz, get her out of here," I said. "I'll handle this."

"I'm not going anywhere without both of you, Krissy," Abby said firmly. That was incredibly brave considering how terrified she was.

Just as the snakes tried to strike, a powerful gust of wind flew through the house. The snakes rose into the air in unison. With another powerful blast of air, they were flung out of the open window.

"Whoa..." I said. I looked at my best friend with an impressed grin. "Go, Liz!"

"I lost my parents last night," Eliza replied firmly. "We are not losing Abby, too."

"What...? How did they just...?" Abby tried to ask.

"I'll explain later!" I said as more snakes appeared. Since Abby had already seen Eliza use magic, I figured it wouldn't matter if I did the same. I sent a tidal wave at the latest swarm of snakes and blasted them out of the window, too.

"Watch out!" Jenna's voice cried from outside.

I opened the back door and ran into the backyard. Eliza followed behind me. Jenna, Vanessa, Faith, and Lucky stood there battling against the snakes we'd just evicted from my house.

Jenna started dropping them in holes and burying them. Faith set as many as she could on fire. Vanessa was throwing some kind of energy blasts at them. And, much to my confusion, Lucky seemed to be making them vanish into thin air.

I watched in mild fascination for a minute before using my Water magic to help. Eliza raised a bunch of snakes into the air, which Faith promptly set on fire.

"We're going to end up on the evening news," I said as the battle waged on in my backyard. Surely one of my neighbors would notice a magical backyard battle against a swarm of snakes, even if they were all jaded New Yorkers. The natural reaction would be to grab a camera phone and hit record.

"Don't worry about that," Lucky replied. "No one can see us."

"How?" I asked.

"I put a labyrinth around your house when I saw the snake invasion," he replied cheerfully. "That will basically keep everything we do inside of it invisible."

"Won't they notice my house went missing?"

"They still see the house. They just don't see us or the snakes."

"I repeat, how?"

"I'm really good at what I do, Ryd."

I tensed. Rydia stirred inside of me at the familiar nickname. "How did you know about that?" I asked.

"He's Ly," Vanessa explained as she blasted another snake into smithereens.

"And his soul is awake?"

"Completely," he replied with a grin. "I sort of died, but I got better!"

Eliza was staring at him. Suddenly, she started to cry. She flung her arms around him. "Ly!" She sobbed.

"Um... Hug later, Liz, fight now," I said in confusion.

"It's Kleia," Vanessa realized. "She was very close to Ly. Kleia's emotions must have overwhelmed Eliza."

"I'm okay," Eliza said quickly as she released Lucky. "Sorry, it was the shock..."

"Let's finish this," Faith said.

We worked together, each of us using our strengths to destroy the snakes. Somehow, none of us ended up getting bitten. When the last snake vanished, I took a moment to catch my breath. Lucky released the outer labyrinth. I physically felt it open and fade away.

The last thing I expected was to look up and see a spirit floating in front of me. He looked familiar, but I couldn't quite place him.

"Krissy... I'm so sorry," he said softly. And then, without warning, his hands wrapped around my throat.

I tried to pry them off of me, but his grip was surprisingly strong for a dead guy. I struggled against him as hard as I could, but it was useless. I couldn't breathe as he strangled me.

"Krissy!" Eliza cried in alarm. She started to run toward me, but stopped as Abby joined her.

"What's wrong?" Abby demanded.

"Krissy, what's happening?" Jenna added.

That was when I realized that no one else could see the dead guy. I closed my eyes and tried to focus. Maybe I could blast him away with some Water magic? The only problem was, I suddenly couldn't remember how to access my powers.

I blacked out as Abby and Eliza frantically shouted my name.

I immediately found myself standing outside of my body. The ghost was still clutching my body in his hands, but I'd gone completely limp. My friends tried to help, but they couldn't see anything except my limp body levitating in midair. Needless to say, they were pretty freaked out. They were kept away from me by an invisible force, but they kept trying to reach me anyway. It was a shame Emily wasn't there, since she would have been able to see the spirit.

A woman stood across from me. Her dress looked like it was made of ocean waves. Her eyes were the color of the Sea. Her hair flowed in waves and was light brown. She smiled at me and said, "It's about time! I've been waiting to talk to you forever, Krissy!"

"Who are you?" I asked.

"I'm you, now. But, technically, I'm Rydia."

I stared at her in surprise. "You're my inner Goddess?"

"Yep! It looks like you've gotten yourself into quite a mess today. You and I are both excellent at getting into messes." She laughed. "Luckily, we're just as good at getting out of them." She paused before saying, "You don't remember, do you?"

"Not much," I admitted.

"You used to remember. You were the first to remember, as a toddler. Our affinity for Water provides clarity."

"Why did I forget, um... Other Me?" I asked.

She smiled patiently at my choice of words. "You suffered a trauma," she replied.

"You mean the accident?"

"No, Krissy. This was long before that. You were five, and someone found you."

"Who was it?"

"It was a Tree Nymph, one who disliked my father and, by default, hated me. You need to remember it now, Krissy. It's important... I'm sorry."

With that, Rydia touched my forehead. Suddenly, I had a powerful flashback.

The boy who had strangled me was very much alive. He was playing with a tiny version of myself. I looked around four or five years old. We were in the woods.

I was initially delighted as a tree came to life. It turned into a beautiful woman. I thought this was amazing. The boy tensed, making me reconsider as he moved in front of me protectively.

"You can't protect her, Cephissus," the tree woman said. "She will pay for the actions of her father!"

"Tophie, who is she?" Tiny Me asked.

"Don't worry, Sis," the boy replied. "Everything's going to be okay."

Sis? I thought in confusion. I was an only child. Who the hell was Tophie?

"Give the child to me!" The tree woman demanded. "She will pay for her father's actions!"

"I won't let you harm her, Tessia," he replied firmly.

"Her father believes she was destroyed! I will destroy her for real before he can learn otherwise!" Tessia insisted. "Hermes will suffer for daring to reject me!"

"She is my sister, Tessia, and I won't let you kill her just because Hermes didn't want to date you."

Tessia's roots shot out of the ground and wrapped around my tiny throat. I struggled to breathe as she squeezed.

Tophie pulled out a knife and cut the roots off of me. They regrew and focused on him. As he was strangled, the sky opened up. The storm had come from out of nowhere.

"Tophie!" I screamed. "Let my brother go!"

Tessia ignored me as I screamed and pounded my tiny fists against her tree body. It hurt me more than her, but I didn't stop. She started to crush his chest with her roots. The storm raged stronger. As water burst from the ground, Tessia lost her balance and briefly released Tophie.

"Krissy... You won't be safe if you remember without me here," Tophie said weakly. "I'm so sorry. You can't protect yourself yet."

"I fix!" I said stubbornly. Tiny Me put her hands on the boy and tried to heal him, which confused Present Day Me. I wasn't a healer, but I was positive that's what my younger self was doing.

Tophie wasn't healing. There was too much damage to his chest and I was too young to reverse it.

"This isn't your fault," he told me. "I love you. I'm sorry I have to make you forget. It's the only way to protect you."

Water flooded the woods. Tessia began to drown and then turned back into a tree. Her roots did not replant themselves. Her trunk fell to the ground, lifeless.

"I'll always be with you, Baby Sister," Tophie said. "I will always protect you. And, one day, I'll tell our mother and your father that you have returned."

As he died, the storm gradually grew worse. I knew it was my emotions causing the rain to fall. And then, it stopped. Tophie raised a hand and moved it toward me. That sent a wave of water at me and, suddenly, I didn't remember my magic, or being Rydia, or anything that had just happened... I also didn't remember Tophie.

I snapped back into the present, still not in my body. "Who was Tophie?" I demanded.

"His name was Christopher. Long ago, he was my older brother, Cephissus, son of Tethys and Oceanus, and father of Narcissus," Rydia explained. "He incarnated on Earth to experience mortal life, and I found my way to him as his younger sister once more."

I stared at her. "I'm an only child," I insisted.

"He was eleven when you were born, and he was sixteen when he gave his life to protect you. He was the only person who knew you were my reincarnation, and to keep you safe, he told no one."

"He made me forget him," I realized. "He died saving me and he made me forget!" I was simultaneously furious and devastated.

"Krissy, he's under Theos's control. You have to free him," Rydia said. "Our brother is a really good person. He doesn't want to hurt you. Wash away the energy controlling him. Our mutual blood tie to his soul and his incarnation will be stronger than any hold Theos has managed to gain."

"I don't know how," I protested.

"You do, Krissy," Rydia replied. "It's as easy as breathing. Water flows naturally. Don't fight it. Just go with the tide."

I nodded and forced myself to relax. I allowed Rydia to take my hands. She turned into a wave of water and slammed into me.

Suddenly, everything I'd known as a tiny human came back to me. I remembered Rydia's magic. I remembered her life. I remembered my brother. I understood what I needed to do.

Embracing Rydia, I became the Goddess I was meant to be. I felt my soul turn into nothing but water. I flowed into my body, settling in as my body adjusted to having me back inside of it.

I opened my eyes and grabbed onto Tophie's hands. I allowed Water to flow between us. It came out of my hands and traveled into his spirit. Suddenly, his eyes widened. He released me. I fell to the ground.

"Krissy!" Abby cried. She was finally able to reach me. She wrapped her arms around me tightly.

"I'm okay," I said. My throat was pretty scratchy, but I could feel it rapidly healing as Tophie's Water magic wrapped around me.

"I'm sorry," he whispered.

"It's okay, Tophie," I said. "I know you'd never hurt me. I remember you now."

He nodded. "Thank you for freeing me," he replied.

"Thank you for saving me back then."

He smiled sadly before fading away. "Krissy... Did you just say Tophie?" Abby asked.

"Yes," I replied. "I remember, Abby. I remember everything."

"Everything?" Jenna asked.

"Everything," I confirmed. My friends clearly understood that my inner deity had fully unlocked. Abby, on the other hand, was confused.

"Do you want to explain all of this to me, Kiddo?" Abby asked.

A confused-looking college kid came around the back of the house at that exact moment. "Um... Delivery?" He asked with three boxes in hand.

I looked at Abby. "You ordered a lot of pizza," I said.

"I just had a feeling we'd need it," she replied, "and seeing as how we have guests, I guess I was right." She pulled out her wallet and paid for the pizza, giving the guy what looked like a pretty nice tip. He hurried away like he sensed he'd interrupted something big.

"Alright, Girls... And Lucky," I said. "Let's sit down and talk about this over lunch."