Inside the hut they found a roaring fire despite the heat of the tropical climate. Knowing that they were about to enter the unknown, they did not even seek to question the need of the fire. A large pallet was prepared with room for both Lucy and Ian to lie together. Maya met them at the door and led Ian to one side of the pallet and indicated that he was to sit and wait. Lucy sat beside him while Maya left the hut with the guards. The chief entered with a steaming cup and handed it to Ian.
"Drink it all while it is hot… you will soon enter a deep sleep. While the potion does its work, your body will be taxed to its limits, and your mind will be dreaming. These will not be dreams but visits to your past lives. It is important that you do not become involved in these lives, but merely an observer. You do not wish for your mind to be trapped in the past should your body survive this ordeal. Lucy will be with you to care for you as you enter the sleep, and she will be taking her own journey with the Morca once your sleep has deepened sufficiently. Do you have any questions?"
"I have… I have one…" Lucy said as she watched Ian gingerly drinking the fiery brew. "Why… why do I need to take the Morca? I just want to take care of Ian… I don't care about my past lives any more…"
"Lucy… you have much to learn… do you not trust us yet?" the chief said softly.
"I do… I trust you… alright… I'll do as you say…" she said softly.
Ian had finished drinking and laid the cup on the floor and relaxed onto the pallet. He reached out and pulled Lucy into his arms and held her tightly as he felt the affects of the brew begin to dull his senses. His last words as he drifted into sleep were ones of love for Lucy.
After Ian was still for a moment, Lucy looked to the chief with tears in her eyes, "I'll never… I'll never see those beautiful eyes again, will I? He'll never look at me with love… I'm alone now, aren't I?'
"You will never be alone, my child," the chief replied. "Ian is with you always… you know that, I can see that in your eyes and your hearts… that is why we agreed that you should marry before the ordeal… now tend to Ian's needs as he adjusts… the needs of the virus will ravage his body for the next few hours…"
Maya returned to the hut with a basin of cool water and a soft sponge as well as linens and blankets. For the next few hours, Lucy took care of Ian as his body reacted savagely to the potion in his system. While he did not speak, he sometimes cried softly or smiled, and even laughed once. His body's temperature changed from feverish to chilled and Lucy continued to make him comfortable with Maya's able assistance. Finally, his body lay still and at a constant temperature, while his emotional reactions were also gone.
"He has entered the sleep," Maya told Lucy as she touched the other woman's arm. "I will remain with Ian while you prepare for your own journey. There is a place where you may cleanse yourself and change. My husband will meet you when you are ready."
Lucy left the room after leaving a long and lingering kiss on her husband's lips… "my husband… Ian is my husband..." she thought as she looked at the rings that Ian had purchased at the resort just two days prior, finally realizing that Ian had known all along what the visit to Tirama might mean to them. It was dark outside the hut, but light shown brightly from the moon as she washed in the basin and dressed in the clothing Maya had prepared. Lucy sat on a stool and concentrated her energy toward Ian's healing… quieting her own soul before leaving the hut to meet with the chief.
"Lucy… are you ready to face your journey?" the chief asked softly.
"No… I'm frightened," Lucy answered honestly.
"Good… it is good that you are facing your fears… wherever your journey takes you, know that it is for a purpose. You are more special than you know… your gifts are exceptional…"
"Well… there are only two of us now… the vampires wiped out all the slayers but Rafe and I… and I was never trained…" Lucy started.
"You are much more than a slayer, Lucy. Slayers are but soldiers in the army of the world. They often succumb to the evil that they are sworn to fight… and with all their tricks they are still nothing but mortal humans," the chief said.
"I'm as mortal as they come, chief. There's nothing special about me… except for what I can do for Ian. I will be forever grateful that I was able to offer comfort and respite for him… but I'm nothing special. My cousin, Rafe… he's the real slayer… he has so much more power than me," Lucy replied.
"Your cousin is the one who is not special, Lucy. Yes, he is a slayer, and he could have been more than he is for having lived in the light for so many years. But after a year in the mortal coil… with the woman he loves… he has succumbed to anger and jealousy. His powers are adequate for the fight he has chosen… but he has no self-awareness, no wish to be more than he is. Had the pretender infected his woman, he would have left her. He could not have abided her affliction and he would have inflicted his own brand of pain. He does not have your generosity of spirit or your capacity for love," the chief said with obvious passion in his voice.
"But Rafe and Alison… they are meant to be together…" Lucy interrupted.
"They have their own ordeal, and it is unclear if they will overcome. Regardless of what happens to your mortal bodies… you and Ian have already overcome. There is nothing more that either of you needs to say or do for the other… your love has transcended this plane…"
"But… Eve… Eve is Ian's soul mate… they are destined to be together… I was just fortunate to spend part of this lifetime with him," Lucy whispered, the pain from that truth evident in her voice. "I would give anything to be the woman that is with him throughout eternity… but that position is already taken. All I can do is love him for this life… for as long as we have together… and care for their son…"
"My dear… you cannot start your journey in this way. Walk with me," the chief said as he took her arm gently. "Look to the sky. Have you ever seen the stars shine so brightly? I believe that you have one named for you?"
"Yes… how did you…?" Lucy asked, looking quizzically at the chief. "It's right over there," she said and pointed in the direction of the star that her ex-husband, Kevin, had purchased for her in happier times.
"Let your heart soar to that star… and tell me what you feel…"
Lucy stood for a moment, embracing the star with her soul and freeing her mind of all conscious thought. Suddenly, as if it exploded in her mind, she remembered the moment when she received the gift of a star… and the man who had been by her side when it arrived. "Ian," she breathed softly. She looked at the chief and understanding dawned in her eyes, "We've been together before, haven't we? This isn't the first time… and… it won't be the last… will it?"
"That is one of the things you needed to learn, Lucy. The other is that your powers of perception, your acceptance of the universe and all that it has to offer—that is not part of being a slayer. That is part of the special and unique person you are… and your visit to Tirama has been foretold as well… you and Ian have been together in our stories for many, many years. Now it is time for you to begin your journey… at the side of the man who is always your destiny… as you have known from the moment you met in the throes of your grief…" the chief continued as they walked back toward the hut where Ian lie deeply sleeping.
"My grief… Chief… is there anything that you don't know?" Lucy said in astonishment.
"Yes… there is much that I am not permitted to know… and much that I do not wish to know… but I have had a vision which gave me all that I needed to help you and Ian to complete your journeys… so that I may complete my journey as well. Trust in the universe, Lucy… all will be revealed," he said as they entered the hut.
Lucy checked on Ian and found him sleeping deeply and comfortably. She sat on the pallet next to him and drank the cup of Morca provided by Maya. As she felt the affects begin to make her body feel lethargic, she stretched out on the pallet in front of Ian. The moment her head lay next to him, his arms reached out in sleep and pulled her in closely and they remained asleep in each others arms… each on a journey of discovery as Maya and her husband kept vigil at their side.
