by E. S. Mercer
“The hinges have been bent,” my mother offered, touching the metal. “Maybe if you…” But before she could finish her sentence, I had already read her mind, and was waving my hand over the damaged juncture until it straightened itself out.
“Evangeline?” Michael asked, jumping off the bike and running towards me. “Is that you?”
“It is, finally,” I replied, hugging him. “I’m finally myself again.”
“Oh,” he said, seeming a little disappointed, releasing me. “I’m so glad.” “Are you ok?” I asked, as we walked down the long lane. I had noticed the lack of guards when we first arrived, but paid little attention as my focus was on him.
“Yeah, just wondering what happened to Anessa?” he asked, keeping his eyes on the woods.
“She’s still in here,” I replied. “She’s part of me. I thought you would be happier to see me.”
“I am,” he said, nodding his head and smiling but then chose to walk the rest of the way in silence.
Most of the people in the Manor, however, were much happier to see me. “We thought you were dead,” Elaina announced, dragging me into the grand ballroom and straight to the pile of ashes. “This is literally what is left of you and we have no idea why!”
“No, I am right here,” I said, trying to calm her down. “That is just the original vessel.”
“Then you are not Anessa anymore?” Ryan asked, joining us.
“She’s in here,” I said, patting on my chest. “She is a part of me.”
He rushed over, visibly unsure of my answer as he looked me straight in the eyes.
“No, no,” he kept saying, until he stormed out. “Ryan,” I called out, running after him. “Wait.”
“There is nothing to say,” he replied, refusing to look at me. “She’s gone.” “She isn’t gone,” I said, grabbing his arm, forcing him to turn towards me as I put my hand on my chest. “She is in here. She is a part of me. I am Anessa as much as I am Evangeline.”
“No,” he said, pulling away. “She grew into her own person. She had her own identity. She became so much more than you.”
“What is that supposed to mean?” I asked, slightly offended.
“She sacrificed who she was for you,” he growled. “She made a choice no one should ever have to make.”
“And she did it to save you,” I tried to reassure him. “Who she was is very much alive inside me.”
“You didn’t need to do it this way,” he said. “You two could have worked together to stop them, but you didn’t have to do it like this.” “Ryan,” I started to say. I wanted to explain why I had to do what I did, but I wasn’t sure he would understand. Heck, I’m not sure I even understood.
“I just can’t.” he said, walking away.
“He’s not wrong, you know,” Michael commented, standing in the doorway. “If you are the Una Vis, you didn’t need to draw your power from her. You could have found a way inside yourself.”
“But I had given her a part of myself I need to get back,” I argued.
“But you are in everything,” he said. “So why did you have to take it from her?”//
“Because she held the key to unlocking my power,” I replied. “That I needed back from her.”
“So then that is all you should have taken,” he said, turning to walk back into the room.
“I needed this body,” I said, starting to go after him. “I needed this vessel to fulfill the prophecy.”
“You didn’t need a body to do that,” he said, refusing to look back. I don’t know why I said what I was about to say, but being the physical embodiment of such a higher being didn’t stop me from being utterly stupid sometimes. Then again, maybe it was the part of me that was still Anessa, wanting Michael to know what I was about to tell him.
“We are pregnant,” I blurted, a little louder than under my breath.
Through all the chatter in the room, he stopped in his tracks, hearing me loud and clear. He took a couple steps back, still refusing to turn around.
“What are you talking about?” he asked, placing his right hand on the hilt of his sword. “Anessa was pregnant,” I replied, taking a step towards him. “And so am I.”
“Don’t,” he said, putting his hand up. “Don’t come any closer.”
“Your baby is fine,” I assured him. “Very much alive and joined with mine.”
"Joined with yours?” he asked finally turning around. “What the hell is that supposed to mean.”
“My child merged with the one I already inside this body,” I replied sheepishly.
“And you are pregnant how?” he growled. “From before,” I replied. “Your brother and I…”
“Does he know?” he asked, cutting me off.
“No, I never got the chance to tell him. My father froze me before I could,” I replied.
“You do realize I loved her because I thought she was you, right?” he asked.
“Ok!?” I said, a bit confused. “What does that have to do with this?” “I really loved her,” he replied. “I thought I had finally gotten everything I wanted. I really believed you and I were together. So, this baby…” He stopped, choking back his tears. “That baby is all I have left of a life I thought I could have with you…” He took a deep breath, “and now you are telling me that is gone too.”
I moved towards him, desperately wanting to comfort him as I saw him fighting to hide the anger and sadness inside him. “No, I mean yes, technically, but,” I said, trying to explain the how we and the babies had merged, but he didn’t want to hear it. To him, his baby was gone.
“Then there is nothing more to talk about,” he said turning around and storming into the room.
I could feel his heart shatter and it killed me, causing me collapse to the floor, sobbing.
“Whatever this is, it's gonna have to wait,” Elaina commanded, picking me up off the floor. “We need you to focus.”
“I know, I’m sorry,” I said, fixing myself. “It’s been a long time since I was able to feel this kind of emotion and it's overwhelming.”
“Anessa knows it well, it shouldn’t be too hard to control,” she chastised. “We need you to help us figure out how to stop that!” she said pointing out the large hall window. “That my dear, I believe is the end of the world.”
“And how do you propose we stop them?” Renu asked, joining us.
But I didn’t answer, I just stood there staring at him, realizing I hadn’t thought about it at all.
“We fight,” Raphael interjected. “If we all work together, we will be much stronger than they could ever be.”
He walked over and placed his hand on my shoulder. “What is your plan to stop this?”
“I don’t know. Like I told your mother, I am still trying to break down the barriers in my mind,” I replied.
“Well, now is the time to believe in yourself,” he whispered. “Put aside all your doubt and clear your head.”
“I just don’t know what I can do to stop this,” I whispered back. “I don’t know how to fix it.” “Maybe if you stop thinking so much, you will figure it out,” he replied, patting my shoulder. “I believe in you.”
“You are going to have to figure it out, and fast,” Ramiel begged, stumbling through the front door. “Father and the King are coming and they have brought their entire armies with them.”
“To do what?” I asked, genuinely want to know. “The world is ending, what more do they want?”
“They want you!” my mother announced, morphing into Arabella, and grabbing ahold of me. “And I am going to give them what they want!” The next thing I know, I am in the center of the Manor grounds with my bare feet hovering slightly above the brittle grass, which had been scorched by the intense heat of the atmosphere around us and my arms were pinned to my side by an invisible force. On either side of me stood Samiel and Hyperion, with Arabella out front creating a force field around us.
“What are you doing to me?” I asked, trying to free myself from th
eir mystical grip.
“Forcing you to watch their destruction,” Hyperion replied, walking out towards Arabella. “and weakening you in the process.”
“And you?” I asked, turning towards Samiel, “Why are you doing this?”
“Because you can’t give me what she can,” he replied, following him. “She is much stronger than you.”
“Because you allow her to be,” I added. “You are what gives her strength.”
“Then we are better off together in the end,” Hyperion said. “Because with their help, I can destroy you.”
“And then you destroy them, am I right?” I asked, feeling the pressure of a tighter grip. “Just you, for now,” he said placing his hand on Arabella’s arm. Samiel followed his lead, connecting her to them like some kind of conductor, as she began drawing energy out of me and allowing it to flow into them, making them stronger.
“Death weakens you and strengthens me,” she laughed, pulling it from me harder. “And now, that your friends have joined the party, your heartbreak will be what gives me the greatest joy.”
“Samiel, you can stop this,” I begged, “I know you don’t really want this.”
“But he does,” he replied, looking over at his brother, "and if I don’t help him get what he wants, I will die too.”
“No, you can’t die,” I assure him. “One cannot survive without the other. I made sure of it when I split my essence between the two of you.” I looked over at Hyperion who shuddered with every pull of energy he absorbed. “Your brother is hungry for power and taking it from me will backfire,” I said, looking back at Samiel. "None of you can live without me either.”
“We won’t need to if we succeed,” Hyperion barked, flinging his hand at me, forcing my body to twist around and fall hard to the ground. My knees. which were pressed against the scorched earth, blistered from the heat as my hands which lay out in front of me, were held down by the few blades of grass left alive.
“They fight with purpose,” he said, releasing himself from Arabella to join me. “Their conviction and faith is almost endearing and honorable.”
“And yet, they fight through a thousand catechized soldiers, to rescue the one person who should be saving them.”
He knelt beside me, “I could spare them all if you just give me what I want.”
“Which is what?” I asked holding back my tears. “What do you want?”
“Control,” he replied, placing his hands neatly on his lap. “Power and everything you were and are.”
“I can’t do that,” I said, firmly. “If I cease to exist, then you do.”
“Not if I absorb your power first,” he argued. “No, that is not how it works,” I countered, seeing things clearly for the first time. “I am no longer an isolated entity. Everything that exists, here and outside this world exists because it has a piece of me in it. You were not built to handle that kind of power.”
“Then they die,” he said, flying to his feet. “Every single last one of them will die until you give it to me.”
“Why are you not understanding me?” I asked, losing my breath. “This will destroy everything.” My eyelids got heavy as I watched time slow itself down, just enough for me to see each and every one of the people I loved being slaughtered by men who were given an unfair advantaged. Juiced with power that wasn’t their own, they were able to cut Samiel’s children down with exquisite precision and ease and I couldn’t do anything about it.
My eyes finally closed, weighed down by the grief and pain that began to crush me. Hyperion’s hunger for power, coupled with Arabella’s need for revenge which was augmented by Samiel’s need to avenge her, made them powerful enough to render me useless; or so I thought in that moment.
I took a deep breath and let myself succumb to the power that inhibited me. And not because I was giving up, but because Raphael’s words finally sunk in.
“Maybe if you stop thinking so much, you will figure it out,” he said. I realized in that moment that every time I was able to tap into my power, was when I wasn’t over thinking it. I just let myself feel what I needed to in order to make it work. I also realized that I was allowed to feel the anger and sadness that had overcome me. I was allowed to feel the love I had for each and every single one of the people who fought and died for me. And I was allowed to use all of that in my favor. Feelings existed because of me and those people I felt for, all existed because of me. Not because I merely allowed them to, but because just like they were a part of me, I was a part of them, and could no longer live without their existence either.
Bottom line was, I, the Una Vis may have created life, but life was what allowed me to continue to exist. When I opened my eyes again, I began to see things very differently. I didn’t not see with the eyes of the vessel that carried me, and I didn’t see things in three dimensions either. There was no set black and white, or colors of the rainbow, and I couldn’t even differentiate one living thing from another. No, what I saw was a current of energy, essence, chi, or whatever you want to call it, flowing through everything, and it all originated and ended with me. I could see it flow through the various veins of each living creature, from the tiniest mites to the largest planet in the sky, all at once, in every version of every timeline that ever existed.
Understanding how it all connected made me realize what I needed to do. My lack of understanding up until this point was what hindered me, not the body I was in. Hyperion may have found a way to tap into the unlimited power that was formed by the existence of life, but only a miniscule portion. Samiel, blinded by his own pain, couldn’t see that he hadn’t lost anything at all.
And I, finally free of the barriers in my mind, could fight back. I stood up, without any hindrance to face my children. Not out of anger or need for revenge, but with compassion and empathy in my heart. They had merely lost their way and needed to see what it cost them.
But before I could show them, I needed to set things right. I looked out into the masses, feeling Michael and Gabriel’s pain as their bodies began to fail them. The darkness that Arabella had injected into us, all of us who were still tethered, weakened and drained us to the point of being hurt like any other mortal.
Some, like Ramiel, who had fought valiantly had already met his end, like Uriel, not far behind him, ignored the Guards coming at her so she could kiss her little brother one more time.
Ryan, whose unwavering loyalty to myself as Anessa, gave him strength to fight his way to the very edge of the force field that separated us, but without any way through it, died with tears in his eyes and his hand over his heart.
I turned back and looked at Arabella. Her darkness began to infect more than just what was around us, and I knew, as long as she was tethered to the Hyperion and Samiel, she would be able to corrupt everything in life that was beautiful.
As I thought of the warmth and love that I wanted so badly to give her, my body, began to emanate an intense white light that engulfed my entire body. It was bright enough to compete with the sun and anything that had been within five feet of me came to life again. I began rubbing my fingers against each other as I started walking towards her, creating an electrical pulse that grew with the friction.
She could see the intensity in my eyes as I marched towards her and she began to back away. She couldn’t tell what was going to happen, all she knew was, she didn’t want to be there anymore. But, before she could escape the force field to run, I stopped, dropped to one knee and slammed both my hands into the ground, sending a shockwave of white energy into the soil, which then traveled to every single tree root and then upwards towards the menacing clouds that hovered above us.
The moment it reached the sky, there was an explosion that shook the entire planet and released the rest of us from her grip. Then, the rain that had viciously washed away the blood and tears suddenly came to a halt, giving way to tiny little luminescent flakes that fell onto the skin of every one of the dead and wounded around the world, until each one of them were healed or
revived. In the background, everything began to reset itself, almost as if time ran backwards, until everything was exactly back where it belonged.
Then, without a second thought I took off running towards Arabella, detached from the legs that propelled me towards the darkness itself. Michael and Gabriel who were now running after me, started begging me to stop, but I couldn’t hear them. Their words were muffled and their movements, as well as everyone else’s around me, began to stutter.
I was now walking in between time. Fast enough to avoid them but slow enough for me to watch everything in slow motion. I turned towards Hyperion and extended my hand as if I was reaching out for him. Then, I pulled it back in, dragging him across the yard fifty feet until he stood next to me. I turned in Samiel’s direction, repeating the movement until he too stood next to me.
“Is this the part where you destroy us now?” Hyperion asked, avoiding eye contact, as if to attempt to hide his fear.
“No,” I said compassionately. “This is the part where I give you life.”
“What?” he asked, taken aback. “You are going to let us live?”
“Yes,” I said. “I cannot kill you.”
“Of course,” he said, laughing it off. “You kill me, it kills everyone else." “Oh no, that tether has been severed,” I said placing my hand on his shoulder. “It was severed the moment I touched the ground. I can’t kill you, because you are a part of me. Like I have explained before.”
“OH,” he said, stepping back. “Then…”
He realized at that moment what I meant by life. “You will live the life of a mortal,” I said sternly. “You will be stricken from the history books and soon forgotten. You will live multiple cycles, knowing who you once were and could never once again be. You will spend an eternity, watching people forget you.”
He collapsed to his knees sobbing. What scared him more than losing his power, or even living the life of a mortal, was knowing that he would vanish into anonymity. I gave him life, but I also gave him what he feared the most.