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Chapter 33: Truth
"Bonding? What do you mean? Who are you? Where are…" the girl thought for a moment, then finished her question by asking another, "…we?"
Asteria chuckled and the girl thought that with each melodious sound, a star was either born, destroyed, creating super novas. Accross the dark blue robes, the girl thought she could see those phenomena twinkling in the glittery blackish blue. "If you'd like to refer to yourself as 'we,' that is perfectly fine. You two have created an entirely new being, the likes of which has never been seen before."
"I—I don't understand. Am I…? Is she…? Are we…?"
A being robed in luxurious crimson robes chuckled, holding up each pointer finger. Their nails were crowned like royalty, shining like blood rubies or something far more valuable. Their robes shone like fresh blood, oozing from an open wound. "Precisely! You are you, but you are also two. Two who became one; and one, who is two in one!"
"Ugh, my head hurts," the girl murmured, touching a delicate hand to her forehead. She realized the weight of a tiara on top of her head. Oh, how she would have liked to see what it looked like! Because whatever it looked like it must be absolutely fabulous if she really was among the gods. But there was too much information to process at the moment. The fabulous tiara could wait... she just hoped it wouldn't be long.
"You think having just one other being to bond with is difficult? Try and imagine having six others in there too; now that's a headache," the bloody deity chuckled.
The girl cast an even more confused glance at the figure, her mouth hanging slightly ajar.
"Pay Eris no mind." Asteria smiled and laid a gentle hand on the girl's cheek. "The Deity of Destruction knows not when to stop joking," the being said, flashing a playful glance at the one in red.
Eris offered a wicked smile in return, teeth sharp as daggers, and shrugged a shoulder. "That is not entirely false."
"D-Deity of Destruction?" asked the girl, mouth gaping in awe and terror.
"Pleased to meet you, little one!" Eris smiled widely, dagger teeth gleaming as bright as the wicked excitement in those eyes that reflected war, power, and destruction. "Though I guess I couldn't exactly call your power little."
"M-My power?"
"Eris, please. The poor girl is confused enough as it is," Asteria said gently.
"Besides, getting a close-up of your ugly mug is probably going to give her nightmares," added a being in gleaming, sun-bright robes. Eris sneered at the other god saying, "Please, if this mug was ugly, then you'd have some brains, Hyperion" then stuck out a tongue that was obviously as sharp as any sword.
"Let us just explain to her what is going on. There's no need for petty insults and squabbles." the being in blue stated, rubbing their forehead before turning back to the girl. Asteria didn't see the god called Hyperion stick out their own tongue at Eris, which made the girl want to giggle uncontrollably. Thankfully Asteria continued before she could. "You must be baffled by your newfound ability. Truth be told, we are all just as awe-struck as you are. Mortals have never bonded like us gods before, and we did not know it was possible."
"But what is bonding? What happened to us…or to me? Wait, did you just say gods!?" The girl squeaked.
"Pluto, care to explain what is going on with this special girl?" Asteria requested, motioning to the being in purple, sending asteroids careening across the starry robes.
Pluto stared blankly at the other deity before shaking off the stupor and breathing a sigh. "Of course!" The being clothed in purple took a few steps towards the girl. "Let me first ask you this, though. What is your name?"
The girl looked up at the deity, puzzled. "My name?"
Pluto nodded. "Yes. What should we call you?"
She looked down and furrowed her eyebrows. "Um… I'm not really sure. Part of me wants to say Sofia… Part of me wants to say Amber, but…I don't know how to explain it…" Her voice sounded familiar, felt familiar. But also one of the strangest sensations as it came from her mouth in a fusion of her sisters.
"It's like you are both of them, but also neither of them at the same time, isn't it?" Pluto inquired.
The girl nodded. "Yes, that's precisely it. It's like…I'm someone completely new, while still knowing what it was like to be someone else."
"How about we come up with a new name for this new someone, shall we? Perhaps, Sofamber?"
The girl furrowed her eyebrows pensively before shrugging a shoulder.
Pluto chuckled. "I didn't think that was the best fit for you either."
The girl smiled in response to the deity's warmth.
"What about Amberfia?" asked the being in black, placing a little too much emphasis on the second syllable.
"Ew! Erebus, that sounds like a disease!" Eris cringed.
The spirit in white couldn't help but stifle a chuckle.
"What are you laughing at?" the black-robed one sneered.
"I apologize, but I can't help but agree. It does sound a bit like a plague of some sort."
Erebus growled through clenched teeth.
Pluto laughed out loud. "Hyperion, I do believe you are right! I can see the humans now! 'It looks like a serious case of AmBERfia and should be treated right away!"
The bloody, sunny, and ghostly deities all laughed together while Erebus shot them an irritated scowl, black tendrils swirling as if ready to strike at any moment.
"Oh, come on, Erebus. Lightenup. It's all in good fun," Hyperion stated, clapping the other being on the shoulder.
There was a brief pause before the three jocular deities erupted in boisterous laughter; the other three also couldn't help but try and hide sniggers, causing the brooding black figure to grumble even more.
"What's so funny?" the girl asked.
The blue being smiled at her and spoke gently in her ear. "Hyperion is the Deity of Light and Erebus, the Deity of Darkness."
The girl thought for a second, "Oh!" she giggled, putting a small hand up to her mouth.
"Don't worry, we will explain in a moment, I promise." Asteria smiled. "We tend to get a little sidetracked when something exciting happens."
"Eh-hem," the gleaming gold being interjected. "We apologize, Erebus. It was not our intent to upset you so. Let us get back to the task at hand."
The five other deities calmed down and turned their attention to the one in yellow. Erebus huffed a sigh. "It's about time."
"Quite," Asteria agreed, laying a hand on the girl's shoulder. "What about the name, Amfia?"
The girl's eyes lit up. "Oh! That's lovely!" she exclaimed, folding her hands in front of her chest.
"Amfia it is, then!" Pluto declared gesturing grandly to the small girl, dark purple ectoplasm billowing around. "Now that that's cleared up, I should explain what is going on, shouldn't I?" Pluto raised a hand and coughed, clearing their throat.
"We are the Guardian Deities of the Realms. We made the world and everything in it and keep a close watch on the natural balance of things. With each realm, there is a special type of magic that we created and gifted to you, our creations. My name is Pluto. I am the Guardian Deity of the Infernal Realm, or the Realm of Humans. I concern myself with the lifespan of all living things, human and non-human. I see to it that everything lives until the proper time comes for them to join the gods once again." The ghostly being then motioned to the one shining with heavenly light.
"I am Theia, the Guardian Deity of the Celestial Realm. After Pluto is done with the mortals, they come to my Realm, where their eternal assignment is decided. I am also called the Guardian of Peace, and I look out for well-being of mankind." The deity then motioned to another who was covered in vines and flowers, with bark-like skin.
"Phanes is my name, and I am the Deity of Creation. While Theia and Pluto are responsible for death and afterlife, I am in charge of creating it. All living things originate in my Realm and remain there until they are fully ready to be introduced into the Realm of Humans."
"You already know I'm the Deity of Destruction, though you could also call me the Deity of War," Eris smirked. "I gift the beings Phanes creates with the power to conquer their foes. From the venom of snakes, to the pride of man, I imbue all things with destructive power, nature included; but Pluto is the one who ultimately decides when and how living things meet their demise, and Theia makes sure war doesn't spread too widely. We all play a part in this game of balance." The red being waved a hand toward the aforementioned gods.
The mighty being akin to the sun then stepped forward. "Hyperion is my name and I am the Deity of Light. I created the sun and govern the length of days to make sure everything has the light it needs to survive."
"And I am Erebus, Guardian Deity of Darkness. I made the moon and give rest to the creatures that wake in the sun, while providing my creatures of darkness a place to thrive."
"We also govern the flow of time: when events happen, how they happen, and who they happen to," Hyperion explained further.
Amfia looked around at all the gods before turning to the one that was next to her. "And I am Asteria. Deity of Transformation, or Stars; I make it possible for things to change and evolve. I am also the reason why you are here."
"So, you're the one that brought me here?" Amfia asked. It felt odd referring to herself as 'me,' but she was slowly getting more comfortable with her new self.
"It was not my original intention, but in a way, yes," Asteria stated. "Perhaps it's best if we start at the beginning so that you understand.
"Before time came into existence, Chaos reigned supreme. He both encompassed everything and resided within everything. He had no beginning, and he has no end, but because of his oneness with everything, he became lonely. He created a powerful amulet that would give him companionship, and he separated into the seven beings you see before you now. When we scattered from the Amulet, each one of us received a piece of it—a seed if you will—and with the power imbued in each seed, we created our respective realms and the magic that resides in them. After we separated, the Amulet acted as a seed of its own and created this realm for it to reside, and thus separated our Realms. We came together and combined our power to create the humans and the world in which they reside. However, the pull of the Amulet was too strong and we would have become Chaos once again, thus destroying our beautiful creation. We agreed to send the Amulet down to the earth and forget about its power as well as all of the other deities so that we would not endanger our creation." Asteria then continued to explain the story of Kashchey, that he posed a threat to the balance of the worlds because he was slowly but surely becoming Chaos, and why she had given Amber the seed.
There was a brief pause as Amfia took in all of the information. "Wait, so, that's why Vasilia wanted to break my Amulet? Yes, that makes sense. It was a bridge between all the realms and if it was destroyed, she would be able to take down Kashchey!"
"Precisely," Asteria answered.
The girl giggled. "I guess, without knowing it, Vasilia saved the entire universe!"
"Not quite," stated Hyperion. "The realms are still colliding. If they collapse on each other, Chaos will surely reign again."
"And in order to keep that from happening, you must separate the realms once more," Asteria confirmed.
"Me?" Amfia gasped. "Why me?"
"Each one of our Realm Seeds is coded to our specific type of magic and will only activate accordingly. Because part of you is descended from me, you inherited my magic and thus you can use the seed, paired with the power of the amulet, to restore the barrier once again."
"Wait a second. So what you're saying is that I'm a demi-goddess?" Amfia smiled before giggling excitedly.
"Indeed," Asteria chuckled. "And because of the sheer power contained within the Amulet, paired with my magic, you were able to bond together, becoming like one of us. In doing so, you now have the power to restore the barrier between the realms."
Amfia gasped, both enamored with her newfound heritage, and completely overwhelmed with the immense responsibility that had fallen on her shoulders. It was a strange sensation, having two conscious beings inside her head. It was not entirely like they were battling for domination, though there were times when one would be louder than the other. "Wow! I always knew I was something special! I can't believe I'm a goddess! I guess it makes sense, though." The girl giggled. "But how can I make the barrier whole again? My amulet is still cracked."
"Without realizing it, we ordained the Amulet to fall into your hands because of your just and righteous spirit. It is the same reason I deemed to give you the egg. Only you, with your strength and integrity, will be able to separate the realms again," Asteria explained.
"But what about you all? You're gods. Can't you fix it?" Amfia protested.
"We could. However, if we were to attempt it, it is very likely we would bond together and re-make Chaos again. In order to ensure that all of our Realms stay separate, it is best that you use your newfound power to repair it." Asteria said calmly.
"But how am I supposed to figure that out?" the girl pleaded.
Asteria smiled and knelt in front of the girl. "Search deep within yourself. There is great power that you still have yet to unlock." She pointed to the gleaming pendent around her neck. "We could not have ordained a better match for this power. Now, close your eyes and delve into your magic essence."
Amfia thinned her lips and puffed out one cheek, her tri-colored eyes filling with uncertainty as she gazed at her ancestor.
"You can do this. I would not ask you to if I knew you could not," the shining, starry deity encouraged.
The girl managed a fearful nod and then did as she was instructed.
"Good. Now, there is power all around you, immense magic at your beck and call. Feel it, reach for it, and grasp it."
Amfia heeded Asteria's words. She found herself in a black void utterly devoid of light. But she could see herself clear as day. There was an overwhelming sense of strength pulsating around her that filled her both with wonder and dread. She heard a familiar voice calling to her, but it was not the voice of Asteria. It was a voice she remembered from her childhood. It was a distinctly feminine voice, gentle and encouraging.
"Do not be afraid. I am with you, my sweet daughters. Remember, I love you," the voice whispered.