Determination

by Angela B. Macala-Guajardo

  Thanatos said, “Roxie Lohr, you’re not the first mortal to stumble into our realm, nor to earn your way out. Some enter on accident. Others come seeking someone or something, be it tangible or intangible.”

  “No matter the reason,” Keres said, “they enter as one person and leave another, forever changed. You entered our realm, afraid, confused, and heartbroken, but left overflowing with courage and determination.”

  “And you have saved us all from eons of chaos. The universe will always be in a state of flux, though, for such is its nature, but you have not yet spared us from a violent swing into darkness. Vancor is still out there, somewhere.”

  “However, we wish to thank you for what you’ve done by granting you three mercies.”

  “We’re uncertain of what Vancor might do in the wake of this foiled prophecy.”

  “But whatever happens, we wish to insure that you’ll never again have to fight alone.”

  “Which is why we call our three gifts ‘mercies’,” Thanatos said.

  “Three souls we return to you.”

  “Three souls?” Roxie’s heart tried to lift her feet off the ground. Had she heard them right?

  “Sassy, Daio, and Aerigo,” Keres said.

  Roxie’s jaw dropped as her head spun. They were... were they really?

  “We thought hard on which souls would be most advantageous to return to you,” Thanatos said. “What would be fair? What would be just?”

  “Which souls would best suit the greater good?”

  “But we decided to set the greater good aside.”

  “And let your heart choose,” Keres said. “Have we chosen well? We can revise the decision.”

  Had they chosen well? Roxie tried to get her voice to work but her brain had short-circuited after hearing they wanted to give Aerigo back. She didn’t know how to believe it, or react to such news.

  Baku let out a laugh that was also half-sob. “I think her expression means yes.”

  “Well, little one?” Keres said. “We wish to return your lover, a mother-figure, and a friend eager to have a second chance. What say you?”

  Roxie snapped out of her stupor with a shake of her head. “Yes. Please, yes. That’d make me very happy. Thank you!”

  “Very good. You’re quite welcome.”

  Thanatos held up a hand, as if waving, and three spectral figures filed into the chamber. They looked like black, billowing sheets with shoulders, faceless heads, and narrow arms that ended in wide sleeves and no hands. One bore the likeness of Aerigo’s broad shoulders and clean-shaven head. Another had Daio’s narrower shoulders and distinct jawline, and the third had a shadowy representation of Sassy’s head of dreadlocks pulled back under a bandana. All three ghostly beings had glowing white spheres in their chests.

  “These are soul keepers, little one,” Keres said. “The souls they’re keeping are hibernating in a peaceful slumber much like Nero’s. They await their revival.”

  “But first,” Thanatos said, “Daio needs a new master. Aerigo will return to Baku, and Sassy to Mendra.”

  “Would any of you three like to lay claim to him?” Keres held a hand out to Daio’s soul keeper.

  A moment of silence followed as the three gods studied the soul keepers, gears working behind their eyes. Maybe Baku thought two was enough, and maybe Kara didn’t want Daio, since he’d be a constant reminder of the son she’d lost. Or maybe it’d be nice to claim her son’s Aigis, a tangible thing that could bring her closer to her son.

  Removing his hand, Leviathan stepped around Kara. “I’ll claim him. I’ve lost much to the prophecy. To gain an Aigis would be a boon.”

  Thanatos nodded. “He’s yours then.”

  Leviathan strode over to the soul keeper, glass head tucked under one arm, and touched the glowing sphere. It emitted a gentle ding, sounding like a musical voice. His tattoo lines flashed gold and he stepped back.

  “Very good. All there is left to be done is prepare vessels to accept the souls. Roxie Lohr can guide you to a world that can build stable vessels.”

  “Kismet,” Keres said, “a godless world.”

  “How do you know of the existence of a godless planet?” Leviathan said.

  “We’re gods of the dead,” Thanatos said. “We know of all the worlds every last soul comes from. We can’t be blinded like you.”

  “Makes sense,” Baku said. “I still have Aerigo’s body, but the way. Can he use it?”

  “The mortals must repair it first,” Keres said, “and then he can.”

  “Now go,” Thanatos said. “We have informed them of their impending revival, along with the events leading up to it.”

  “I don’t know how to world-hop,” Roxie said.

  “Don’t worry about that,” Baku said. “You just picture that world in your mind and we’ll take care of the rest.”

  * * *

  “Alright, Rox,” a sleep doctor said in accented English, “you’re all hooked up.”

  Roxie was back in Nostrum Hospital, hooked up to some intricate machine called a Dreamwalker. After explaining her situation, which had left staffers feeling skeptical, until they saw the soul keepers, they’d sent her over to the sleep labs and doctors had given her pills that’d help induce vivid dreams. She pulled the white sheets to her chin and wiggled around for a comfortable way to sleep with a wireless plastic helmet attached to her head.

  “All comfy?”

  “Close enough,” she said. “I’ll be fine. It’s the chin strap that’s more annoying than anything.”

  “Yeah, sorry,” the doctor said over the com. “Can’t be helped. Scientists are working on building a full-body capsule Dreamwalker to replace the helmet. Anyway, you ready for me to start the... the... clock thing? I forget the English word.”

  “Timer?”

  “Yes! Thank you. Ready for me to start the timer?”

  Roxie snuggled deeper into the pillow. “Go for it.” It was nice and squishy, so it compensated for the helmet.

  “Very good. I’ll be back in a bit to make sure everything is running smoothly. See you dream-side!”

  She closed her eyes and began the breathing exercise they’d taught her, one that’d help her fall asleep easier. She concentrated on making each breath deep, full, and slow, and once she started feeling drowsy enough, she let her natural breathing rhythm take over.

  Baku had brought Aerigo’s frozen body to Kismet, then left, needing to tend to his mortals in the wake of the war. Kara had gone with him, wanting to be with him after spending millennia apart. Leviathan had accompanied them to Kismet as well, garnering many open-mouthed stares with his huge, draconic body floating down hallways. He’d switched back to his serpentine form and shrunk enough to fit through doorways, but he was still bigger than an anaconda. The three soul keepers followed him everywhere he went, hovering close to his huge head. When he learned of how long the revival process would take, he said he’d return in several days. He wanted to take a good look at Kismet.

  And with that, he exited the hospital, the soul keepers leaving with him.

  As sleep drifted closer, Roxie didn’t know what to think of the three mercies. She believed it was going to happen, but how was she supposed to react? She’d never had a dead person come back to life before. The rational part of her brain insisted it’d believe it when she saw it. The rest of her was curious to see how it all worked.

  At some point Roxie realized she was looking at a chameleon that kept changing colors. She sat on a pale beach with waves rolling in at low tide. The lizard worked its way through every color of the rainbow.

  “Hi, kiddo,” said a familiar voice. “This is an unexpected turn of events, isn’t it?”

  Sassy sat opposite Roxie, arms wrapped around her upraised knees. Roxie’s eyes stung, realizing how glad she was to see Sassy again.

  “Mother figure, huh? Thanatos told me all about it before asking if I’d agree to being revived.”

  Roxie’s vision blurred as she nodded, and her arm
s reached for Sassy before she realized what she was doing. A warm body and warm arms hugged her, and Sassy’s dreadlocks brushed her cheek. A sob escaped Roxie and she hugged as hard as she could.

  Her first purely enjoyable hug from Sassy. No coldness; just comfort.

  “Shh,” Sassy said, gently rocking her. “I promise to take good care of you without disrespecting all your grandmother has done up to this point. I can’t promise I’ll be perfect, but I’ll do my best to love and nurture you.”

  “Thank you.”

  “I’m also really proud of you for taking Nexus down. You’ll have to give me all the details after I’m back.” They mutually let go and Sassy held Roxie by the shoulders. “Ready for the fun part?”

  “As I’ll ever be,” Roxie said with a slight grimace. “I need you to do a full three-sixty so the computer can render a complete model of you.”

  Getting to her feet, Sassy reached for the wrappings holding her sarong on. “Make sure you get a good look. I want to stay as beautiful as I am now.”

  “I will,” she said unhappily. Oh, this is awkward. It was necessary, though. In order to reconstruct bodies for Sassy’s and Daio’s souls, the doctors had hooked Roxie up to the Dreamwalker so their bodies could be replicated. In order to do that, Roxie needed to take their figures in so the computer could record what she saw and start rendering models.

  Sassy let her sarong fall onto the sand and stood proudly before Roxie, who wanted to give her some privacy, but dutifully took in Sassy’s physique. She was tall and strong, built like a dancer and moved like one. She had plenty of feminine curves, yet had a solid build. She could beat people up if she had to. Sassy held her arms out as she slowly turned in place, and lifted her waist-length hair so Roxie could see her shoulder blades and such. The fact that Sassy was perfectly comfortable while parading around in the nude made it easier to do this.

  “Alright, that’s all we need,” a doctor said from somewhere above them, his professional tone tinted with admiration. “Thanks, you two. We’re ready for Daio.”

  The Dreamwalker was by far the coolest piece of technology Roxie had encountered so far. The conscious interacting with the subconscious was unreal. She wished they had this technology back on Earth.

  Sassy wrapped herself back up and kissed Roxie on the forehead. “See you soon, kiddo.” She vanished from the dream, leaving Roxie alone with the chameleon, which had settled on green with pink blotches.

  “Hey there, Rox,” Daio said, appearing in Sassy’s place, already naked.

  Good god! Roxie averted her gaze.

  “Aw, don’t be shy.” His footsteps swished closer. “Besides, I need you to get a good look. I don’t wanna disappoint Sass.”

  Roxie made herself look up, taking in a full frontal of Daio. He was very easy on the eyes. He had a solid, lean build that’d fit right in with Hollywood hotties. He smiled as he slowly turned in place. Roxie couldn’t help but admire his physique. Paired with that devilish smile, girls would flock to his bad boy persona.

  “Like what you see, huh?”

  Roxie felt her face burn and kept silent.

  Daio drew alarmingly close, almost brush his frontside against her. “We could always do a partner swap now and then. Dunno if you’re into that sort of thing.”

  Roxie took a step back, doing her best to keep her eyes from wandering any lower than his chin. “I think I’ll pass.” Under different circumstances, she might’ve been tempted, but not while she was loyal to Aerigo.

  “Maybe when you’re older. But anyway.” Casual slacks appeared on him, making it mercifully easy to stop staring. He stuck his hands in his pockets and fixed her with a serious gaze. “What made you decide to give me this second chance?”

  Memory of his begging her to destroy his soul replayed in her mind. “I didn’t see any reason not to. Besides, it’d make Aerigo and Sassy very happy to have you back as well. I don’t think you’ll waste this opportunity to start life over.” She wanted to give him a hug but she kept the want to herself.

  “You got that right. This is going to be interesting with Leviathan as my new master. I’m looking forward to it. And thanks, Rox. Words can’t adequately describe how grateful I am, so I won’t try, but I wanted to say thanks at least once.”

  “You’re welcome. See you among the living again, soon.”

  “Can’t wait.” He kissed her forehead. “Incoming.”

  Roxie saw the hand and its trajectory but she had only enough time to think, Is he really going to do that? before his hand slapped her glute. She went wide-eyed and Daio laughed.

  “So much for the friendly warning. Maybe one year I’ll tempt you over for a night or two, but for now I’ll respect your monogamous stance.”

  “What about what Aerigo would think?”

  “Rox, he and I have been to many worlds and experienced tons of cultures. Societies handle relationships and intimacy in so many ways. You’re quite beautiful, Rox, and when I see such beauty, I like to express my admiration for it at least in words. In some cultures, people are generous with sharing appreciation for beauty, but in others it’s seen as inappropriate. Talk to Aerigo about it, but don’t get me wrong. I’m loyal to Sassy as you are to Aerigo, but we can talk about that later. We’ll have plenty of time to become good friends.” He kissed her forehead one more time. “Thanks again.” He vanished like Sassy had.

  “Thank you, Rox,” the doctor said. “We’re going to turn off the Dreamwalker and let you finish sleeping. See you in the morning!”

  Roxie watched the chameleon as it sat contentedly by her feet. Dreams were so weird and often nonsensical. The lizard changed from pink and green to a passionate red flecked with orange.

  Big, strong arms wrapped around her from behind, and a body pressed against hers. She touched the arms and her heart fluttered. Warm, familiar arms. “Aerigo,” she breathed.

  Aerigo kissed her just below the ear and hugged tight.

  Roxie wished this moment would never end so she could melt in his arms and warmth, and never stop feeling safe.

  The chameleon vanished and a wave rolled in, breaking in the distance and reaching farther inland like a sheet being pulled over a mattress. The sun was angled just right for Roxie to see the pale sky’s reflection, and when the wave rolled over her feet, her breath caught. Aerigo wasn’t wearing any clothes. The olive skin of his legs and hips outlined her Versaton outfit.

  He kissed her again and breathed on her neck as he spoke, his chest vibrating against her back. “See you soon.”

  * * *

  Roxie still felt like she was dreaming when she woke. Her expression was stuck in a smile. Aerigo really was coming back. All three of them were. Instead of feeling skeptical, she felt like she needed to hold her breath until they stood before her, alive and whole again.

  A doctor accompanied Roxie to the dorms. She rode in a hover wheelchair. The good doctor explained that it’d take about a week to reconstruct the bodies, along with thaw Aerigo’s body carefully and grow him a new heart. As soon as they were ready, it’d be up to the soul keepers to bring consciousness to the bodies.

  Roxie showered, feeling half dreaming, half wide awake, and dressed in plain scrubs so she could do some volunteer work around the hospital. She helped with laundry, changing sheets, cleaning rooms, and restocking supply closets, which was a tad difficult since she couldn’t read the mix of squiggly lines and pictograms that made up Kintish, but she did her best to match the print and put everything in its rightful place. She also helped in the kitchens between bouts of marveling at all the food she’d never seen before. The kitchen was always full of new, mouthwatering aromas, and the cooks, who didn’t know a scrap of English, taught her the names of food and some useful cooking phrases, like “good” (ben) and “no good” (oben). She thoroughly enjoyed the cultural immersion, and they enjoyed teaching her how to cook their food and speak their language.

  When she wasn’t volunteering or feeling too excited to get much sleep, Roxie e
xplored information on Kismet’s internet. She learned how to use the dorm computer with help from an AI named Kennin. She got used to operating a touchless screen, interactive holograms, and how to use a mouse in place of the keyboard, since she couldn’t read all the squiggles. She learned the few keys she couldn’t get around avoiding, and conversed with Kennin at every chance. He was a polite, fascinating piece of technology who delighted in teaching Roxie about Kismet and its history, even the part when Aigis/Noma had saved the planet long ago.

  If Grandma ever needed major medical attention in her old age, Roxie so had to bring her here. Not only was the medical treatment far advance than back home, she’d get a kick out of visiting another world. Roxie intended to return home as soon as Aerigo was able to come with her.

  After Kennin found out that Roxie was an Aigis, word of her return got around. On the seventh day of waiting, during her downtime, she heard a polite knock on her dorm door. Two men, a woman, and a very tall Elf stood in the doorway. They all looked familiar, especially the lady.

  “Welcome back, Rox,” the Elf said. “Remember us?”

  “I remember your faces but not your names,” she admitted. “Come in.”

  The man in his forties led them in. “You look well. I’m Donai, by the way. And this is Skitt, Jenna, and Arryk.” Each of them waved in turn. “It’s nice to see you whole and not needing our medical care. What brought you back and where’s Aerigo?”

  “He’ll be back soon. And I’m here because of him and two other friends. If you want details, you’ll all have to take a seat.”

  Jenna and Arryk sat together on the bed, and the other two parked themselves in guest chairs.

  “You’ve been gone for three years. You must have quite the story to tell.”

  “Three years?” Roxie exclaimed.

  “According to our solar calendar. One lap around our sun is a year, which takes a little over three hundred and sixty days, twenty four-ish hours apiece. The inhabited planets we know of have similar orbits. It seems to be the happy zone for sentient life.”