Book of Panacea

by Tineke Peeters

  “Guess your dad is some kind of healer, huh?”

  Oh sugar, I messed up again. I mentally slapped myself in the face.

  “Yes, kind of. And your dad is the famous smith of all the weapons of the great gods and goddesses of Olympus, must be amazing learning that trait.” I fluttered my eyelashes, trying to distract him from asking questions about my parents.

  I must have looked like an idiot.

  “Are you all right? Do you have something stuck in your eye?” Phatostai looked concerned.

  “Uhm, yes I think so.” I guessed that was a distraction, not the one I was going for though, but it’ll do.

  “Would you like me to take a look?” That was sweet, but I was already rubbing my eyes vigorously, trying to get the imaginary thing out of my eye.

  “No, I think I got it.” The rubbing had resulted in a burning sensation in one eye, which I guessed had something in it for real now; my eyes started watering pretty badly. Ugh, I was probably looking pretty ugly now, but he was not running, so I did not yet look too bad, I supposed.

  “Are you sure? Because it does not look good, and it seems the rubbing has made it worse.” He looked worried.

  “Yes, I guess you could have a look.”

  He came around the fire. This was the closest we have been since I met him three days ago, and I felt that strange hot sensation in my cheeks. I wondered if I was running a fever or something.

  He knelt next to me, put one finger under my chin, and raised my head towards his. With his thumb, he raised my upper eyelid. Goodness, it was getting very warm here. He was staring straight into my eyes. He had lovely soft brown eyes that twinkled a bit in the moonlight.

  I knew he was asking something, as I saw his mouth move, but it was as if he was speaking a different language.

  “Uhm, Pana?”

  “I mmm, sorry, yes?” I sounded a bit breathless, not at all like myself.

  “Could you look to the left and right, please? Just so I can look for any foreign object in your eyes.”

  “Ok,” I said.

  “All clear! Just a scratch I assume.”

  I blinked. Before I could answer, he walked away and the strange feeling was gone. But at least, he did not ask any further questions about my parents.

  ***

  10

  Hades on Zeus’ island.

  “Ugh, what the hell am I doing here? My own palace was so much nicer. The opulence of this place is so, I don’t know, feminine.” Hades was walking down the hallway muttering to himself. He was disgusted with the arrangements forced onto him.

  He guessed Zeus couldn’t resist giving his wife Hera all the means to do what she wants, even with his island. But even Earth was nicer, and Hades’ beloved Hell was extraordinary with lots of power and sparkles, even if he said so himself!

  Gold and rubies and diamonds, were his riches, right in the center of Earth. But stupid Apollo had to go and destroy Earth, taking his palace and riches with it.

  Zeus saved him, but since he didn’t have an island to call his own -like every other god or goddess here, he had been forced to live with his brother and his ridiculous wife. Since Earth, including the humans, had disappeared, Zeus was forced to be loyal to his wife. She loved throwing that into her husband’s face.

  Every. Single. Day.

  Not that he didn’t deserve it, but please, give it a rest already. The fights these two got in were getting to him. After almost a century, Hades was ready to explode.

  “Hey Hades, what do you think of Hephaestus and Aphrodite? Lately, they have been having quite a lot of heated arguments!” Zeus snickered, “You get it? Heated arguments?”

  When Hades didn’t answer, he explained his own joke, “Heated, as in Hephaestus being god of fire? No, still nothing? Gods, are you boring these days!”

  “He has always been boring!” Hera came in. Her red dress was revealing more cleavage and leg than covering it. And someone did her hair up so high she barely got under the opening, into the dining room.

  “But Aphrodite is one evil bitch, I mean, the other day she even tried to get Zeus to tell her that she was more beautiful than me!”

  “What a bitch,” Hades answered, just to get them to shut up about such nonsense that did not interest him even the tiniest bit. If he kept silent, he knew they would continue to gossip like two little girls, just to annoy him. Hades sighed, homesick for the screaming of his precious Hell.

  “Can you imagine that poor son of Hephaestus, having been forced to live with her for 12 years?”

  Hades cringed. Her voice was grating on his nerves, she sounded so nasal.

  Zeus was just sitting there nodding as if he was trying to get his head to come off. In his white toga, he looked as ludicrous as his wife. Hades looked at himself; at least he looked decent-wearing trousers and a simple black leather vest.

  To them, those were ‘human’ clothes. As in, ‘not fit’ for gods.

  “Yes, I am sure he is happy to be on the training island. At least there she can’t bother him until he finishes his training.”

  Hades’ eyes narrowed. Training island?

  “What do you think Hades? Aphrodite a bitch or not?” Hera kept her head to the side, which made the tower of hair lean dangerously close to a candle. This made Zeus smile and wink at him as if he were a ten-year-old. Hades rolled his eyes.

  “I already said she is a bitch and the boy should be happy to be rid of her!” Hades growled at Hera, barely able to stay civil.

  This little piece of information about this island was very interesting, especially since it had never been mentioned before. Hades realized that with these two, he had to tread carefully about asking for information.

  They would know he was interested. And Hera, even though she wanted to get rid of him, was a vindictive goddess and would try to interfere with anything he wanted, just for the fun of it.

  But the training island seemed to be a deserted island except for the occasional trainee. So why should a god, such as himself, not get to inhabit this island?

  Stroking his chin in thought, Hades thought of a possible plan.

  It was probably best to visit Hephaestus first. It had been, what, 20 years since he last visited him? He didn’t even know he had a son.

  Being the only god without children, he had no clue where this training island was, or what its exact purpose was. Didn’t every god or goddess get born with their power? Hades shrugged. A visit wouldn’t hurt and would be a nice change of scenery. And where was his son to live after his training? Maybe Hephaestus could provide more information on that as well.

  ***

  11

  11

  “Good morning, sunshine!” Cyriel cackled cheerfully.

  “Leave me alone! I want just one more hour of sleep! Little Apple finally fell asleep again and for some reason, he is in pain and kept me awake all night!” I turned around on the bed and tried to fall asleep again. Naturally, Cyriel decided this was the moment to start ‘singing.’

  “Please, shut up!” I covered my ears, the noise he makes is not considered singing.

  “I will shut up when you get up!” And on he went with screeching. Yes, screeching. It grated on my nerves, and even covering my head with a pillow did nothing about noise.

  “Alright, alright.” I got up, stretched, and of course woke up Apple. Apple mewled pathetically.

  “Oh, my poor baby, what is wrong with you? I want to help you but don’t know how!” I rubbed one of his heads, which normally soothes him. This time the mewling just got louder.

  “Cyriel, can you get Lottie for me, please?” I yawned. I was so tired.

  “Here I am, My Lady. How can I be of service? Do you want me to clean up some peepee from the bed? Or help with ...” She flew up and down, making me dizzy.

  “Lottie, no I don’t need help with anything, except for finding a solution for Apples’ mewling. I think he is in pain or something, but I cannot find anything wrong.”

  “Oh.” S
he stopped fluttering about and landed next to Apples’ left head. She turned her head to the side, frowning at the pup. Tapping her foot, she pouted her lips. Then she gently put her tiny hand on his nose and closed her eyes. His nose is small, but her hand only covered one-third. It made me feel like a giant. Her eyes popped open wide!

  “As far as I can tell, he is indeed in pain! But I cannot find the exact cause.” She frowned. Then it seemed as if she came up with an idea, I sighed in relief. However, the next thing coming out of her tiny mouth was not what I expected.

  “Maybe you should try? Touch him, I mean, to see if you can find the cause. It is day four after all.” I think it looked like I was trying to catch a fly, with my mouth opening and closing, no words coming out! I totally forgot about this being the day that my powers would (or rather should) come back. And I would need to start controlling them.

  “Huh”, was all I said. I looked uncertain at the pup and then at Lottie. “Why would you think that would be one of my powers? I only ever put things on fire, really.”

  Lottie smirked and crossed her arms over her chest. “Call it instinct.”

  I guessed I could try it. Not like I would do anything wrong with trying, right? I could actually think of lots of things going wrong with this idea. Number one being, putting little Apple on fire. Apple mewled again and even though his eyes were not yet open, it seemed as if he was begging me to help him.

  I sat up straighter on the bed, shook out my hands and asked, “how do I do this?”

  “How am I supposed to know? All I do is touch and close my eyes, then try to concentrate on the body to see if I can find anything wrong. Kind of like checking him out with your hands, but then with your mind.” She shrugged, unsure of what else to add.

  I shook my hands again, took a deep breath and nearly had a coughing fit when Phatostai came in.

  Seriously girl, get a grip. He is just a boy, nothing special. Yeah, tell yourself that enough times and you might even believe it. I am going nuts! Now I am talking to myself; I rolled my eyes.

  “Everything alright?” Phatostai asked while frowning at me. I guess rolling my eyes for no apparent reason, was disconcerting. Duuh! And here we go again, I felt my face going red!

  “Uhm, yes, everything is alright! I mean no, it is not alright.” His eyebrows raised, and he crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the wall. He kept quiet, so I continued. “Apple is in pain and has not slept at all last night, which meant I did not sleep at all.” Suddenly I realized that Phatostai was in my bedchamber in the temple. “Uhm, would you mind going back outside? I will be right out with Apple.”

  He looked around, only now realizing himself where he was. It was his turn to blush, and he looked really cute when he blushed.

  “R-r-right, I will see you outside. It is just that I heard Apple mewling and came in to check it out.”

  Checking out my hair in the mirror, I determined that there was nothing I could do about that disaster. The third brush that Charlie had produced for me yesterday broke last night. I shrugged and washed my face in the basin, then gently picked up Apple and went outside.

  Going outside with Apple in my arms, I saw everyone was in attendance. Maria looked like she was going to have a heart attack; Cyriel was just cleaning his feathers, not worried at all; Charlie and Lottie were hovering around Maria’s head, and Phatostai was wringing his hands together.

  “Okay, let’s do this!” I decided to put a bit of cheerfulness and confidence in my tone, it seemed like everyone needed it.

  “A-a-anything I can do?” Phatostai was apparently very nervous, especially with his stutter coming through. I put Apple down and squeezed his arm. “I am going to do my best to try to help Apple with his pain, and if that does not work, you can give it a try, ok?” He nodded but did not seem convinced. I sighed and knelt down next to little Apple.

  I looked at Lottie who nodded enthusiastically; at least she was confident, I thought. I rubbed my hands together, took a deep breath and closed my eyes. My hands traveled down, drawing closer to Apple.

  Before I even touched him, a bright flash appeared behind my eyelids. I squeezed my eyes tighter, and except for the flash, nothing seemed to be happening. The glow of the flash dimmed and all of a sudden, a figure emerged. Even though my eyes were still closed, I realized that the figure was getting closer. I didn’t know if I should be scared, but the urge to open my eyes suddenly disappeared. I felt a strange calm come over me. The figure came closer and seemed to resemble me. When she came closer still, her appearance altered. She turned into a very fat lady and her hair changed colors all the time. The robe she was wearing shimmered, and even though I did not feel a breeze, it seemed as if it floated on its own. When I looked all the way down, I realized that she was gliding as well. I mean, she walked, sure, but she never actually touched the ground. I suddenly realized that she was holding her round belly with her hands, which were very slender and elegant. She was pregnant. She smiled at me and it was so infectious that I smiled back. She made me happy, which was a very strange feeling to have in the presence of a stranger.

  “Dear, dear, Panacea. How wonderful to see you. You have grown to be such a beautiful young woman and your soul is so pure and wholesome. I knew when I chose someone to care for my beloved animals and nature, that you would be her. I foresaw that there would be a beautiful and powerful soul, born to carry on my legacy. Earth is gone, but all creatures and islands, need someone as well.” Her eyes sparkled. I, however, was speechless.

  When I found my voice, I naturally forgot all ceremony and asked the first question that came to my mind: “Who are you?” She laughed. It was a full-bellied laugh, which made me smile.

  “I, my child, am Gaea, goddess of Earth. I also used to care for all living beings, nature, and the humans.” I frowned.

  “But, you died when Earth died?”

  “Yes, I did, but some small part of me remained. It remains on your mothers’ Island.”

  “The forest we can’t enter?” She nodded. “But how?”

  “Nature and the creatures living in it still needed to be cared for. Most of them are cared for by the gods and goddesses, but some remain without care. The only goddess worthy of my legacy will walk in that forest. This goddess will be trusted by all the creatures in and out of the forest.”

  “All the animals that needed help and came to me?” She nodded again, with a kind smile.

  “That was when I realized you were the one to be able to care for these creatures. When you came of age, the creatures living in the forest started breeding again. Until now they could not, because no one could care for them and their offspring properly.”

  I pondered on this when I felt a small tug in my mind.

  “You have to go now, this creature you started to care for, is also in need of your help and love. He is one of the many creatures that will start to appear. Be careful with whom you share this information about me and the creatures and nature; others will try to take advantage. But now you must hurry, concentrate on Apple and find the problem that is causing him pain. The solution for this pain will come to you naturally.” She smiled and faded away.

  “Wait! Will I see you again?” All of a sudden she came very close to me. Then she hugged me and whispered, “I will always be a part of your soul, sweet child. Just concentrate and when you need help, I will come. But beware; I don’t have too much time left, now that you are here to care for the animals. I believe when your powers are complete, the need for my presence will disappear and along with it the last of my soul will be given to you.” She held me at arm’s length and smiled sadly. “We are kindred spirits, you and I. Allow love in your life and give love to all that deserve it. In the bubble, until your training is finished, I will be here.” She put her hand on my chest, there where my heart was. It was I that smiled sadly now as she floated backward. I realized I needed to concentrate on Apple; he was suffering and needed my help.

  I focused on his body and traveled
with my mind and hands from his nose towards his eyes. I smiled, Apple was teething and his gums hurt something fierce.

  Opening my eyes, I gently opened one of his mouths. Yes, they were red and a little swollen. “Poor baby, I will find something to soften the pain.” I gasped when he opened his eyes for the first time and gazed at me with love and trust. My heart filled with joy and love for this little creature, that was in my care. I was not clueless anymore, I knew that I could do this and plenty more.

  ***

  12

  "What happened!?" Phatostai was shaking me.

  "Hey, what is wrong with you? I am trying to keep my head on my shoulders, not swinging into the trees!" I looked at him annoyed. That was when I noticed the scared look on his face. I looked around and saw Maria and the fairies had the same look on their faces, even Cyriel looked worried.

  "You spaced out! I could not wake you up. You were out of it for at least 5 minutes. We yelled at you, shook you, Maria told me to slap you." My eyebrows rose, and he blushed. "It was either that or Cyriel pecking you." He mumbled looking at the ground.

  I drew in a deep breath, trying to decide what to tell them.

  "It was a bit difficult to get deep enough in my mind to concentrate on Apples' body. You know me, a lot on my mind that needed to get rid of first." Everyone thought this over and then nodded. They accepted my explanation.

  "Now, let's get started on helping Apple, shall we?" I raised one eyebrow and looked everyone in the eyes.

  "What is it that is causing him such pain?" Lottie asked the question everyone wanted to ask.

  "His gums are hurting because he is teething!"

  Everyone sighed in relief that it was not something serious. It made me smile that they all cared for my baby.

  "What can we do to help ease the pain?" Phatostai asked.

  With a finger tapping my lips, I searched my mind for the solution. And sure enough, as Gaea had said, the mixture for the pain relief came naturally to the front of my mind.

  "I need chamomile, peppermint, and cloves. Also, a little oil. Does anyone know of any of these items being on the island?"