Chapter 9

So, the next morning was a soulfire campfire meeting. It was also me meeting the guy holding said meeting, Hermod. Orion was even there, but no sign of Dec.

"Nice ta meet ya Lucky. Welcome to the team of adventurers. Now, let me tell you all a tale." Hermod delves into this whole thing, then tells us about the air stone. We need to find it.

'Lucky, come with Sparklez to the top of your guys' tower. I need to speak with you both.'

'Ok Ianite, we'll be there in a jiffy.' I lean over to Sparky and whisper to him.

"Our lady needs to speak with us, like, now." He nodded, then we both stood up and excused ourselves for the time being. We Elytra'd to the top of our tower to see Ianite sitting on her throne, looking serious. Whoa, I never thought I'd see this look on her face.

"Lucky, Sparklez, one of you two need to be the ones to get the air stone. It is imperative that I get it. It's a very important part of restoring balance to this world. Also keep this to yourselves. I do not trust the followers of my brothers."

"I will do my best my lady. Wait, 'the followers of your brothers'? You mean Tom isn't really Team Ianite?"

"Correct, you were right when you were questioning Tom's alliance when you were talking with Mianite. Sparky and I believe he's still Dianite. We have reason to. We'll show you once you complete your mission."

"Ok. Well, like I said, I'll try my best to get the stone for you." Sparky said he'd do his best as well. She inclined her head in acknowledgement, then we were dismissed. As we went back to the guys, who were goofing around, I heard Ianite telepathically tell me,

'Good luck my hero, my champion.' Those words gave me a boost of confidence, and made me smile like a fool. As we approached the guys,

"What's that look for Lucky? Did Sparklypants ask you out?", Tom asked, teasing me.

"No, absolutely not. We're only friends. He's just a nice person who wants to be a good friend to his friends. He only made me feel safe going into the ocean that one time."

"Whoa, jeez, don't get all defensive and stuff... I only asked a question." I instantly felt bad for snapping.

"Sorry for my tone. I shouldn't have gotten all defensive. You did only just ask a question, and I do know you like to tease. It's who you are. Can you forgive me?" That surprised Tom a lot.

"Yeah, I will forgive you. Wow Lucky. I didn't know you could own up to your mistakes. All I ever known you as is guarded and defensive. Then you surprised me by being nice and helpful that one day, then you got all grumpy again and left. It seems you've started growing since we last saw each other."

"I'm trying... Ianite and I had a talk that day I left in a huff. It's because of her being so kind and listening to my problems and helping me out with them that I want to try and be better. She makes me want to be better.", I said.

"Again, I ask, do you like Ianite? Don't lie either. I'm pretty damn sure all of us can see that you like her." I give him a halfhearted glare, then I sighed.

"Fine. Yes, ok? I like her. So what? It's an unrequited love anyway, so what does it even matter? She's a literal goddess and I'm just a nobody who lost everything in a freakin' zombie apocalypse that I had triggered by not going to bed when I was supposed to when I was 13. I became a vagabond. No home, no real life to speak of, I had pretty much nothing but the tools I made for myself, by myself with the resources I mined.

"I had no friends, not that I wanted any. I didn't want anything tying me to a certain place to trigger another zombie apocalypse. I forgot what had happened so that I could stop feeling the guilt that tore me apart every night I went to sleep. I forced myself to never remember that night ever again, to the point where I actually acquired amnesia about that tragedy that was all my fault and I only remembered that I found myself alone with no explanation. I forgot my life, my friends, everything.

"And now that I remember again, sometimes I have nightmares about what happened and I can't control it. My nightmares always end one of two ways. I either die alongside my village, or I'm forced to watch as every. Single. One of my family, of my friends, of my village, gets annihilated by those damn zombies that I could have prevented... if only I had just gone to bed when I was supposed to..."

I sunk to the ground, now full on sobbing, all my grief coming out in waves, all the emotions I bottled in those 16 years, now overflowing. Sparky started to approach me, but then Ianite, Dianite, and even Mianite appeared. Ianite came over to me as soon as she appeared though, and her brothers stood back. Ianite held me to her and smoothed my hair slowly, calming me as I let my emotions loose.

"I heard everything Lucky. I don't know how, I was well away from here, but I heard everything. Let me tell you now, you're not a nobody. You're very special. You have a special place in my heart. Also, what did I tell you about blaming yourself? Don't blame yourself. Remember, everyone dreams of travelling the world at some point in their lives, not just you. I do completely understand your desire to not want to stick around in any villages for a long period of time after that tragedy though.

"You did what you thought best. It's also completely normal to go through the survivor's guilt. That's what it's called. You're not the only one to go through it. There is help for that, if you would like it. Survivor's guilt is why the guilt tore you apart every night, and why you're having these nightmares now that you've remembered again. And, for someone who went through such extreme trauma to want to forget is normal for some people, but to actually forget the experience they went through is uncommon, but not unheard of.

"Lucky Fire, listen to me... ~I try my best to gather myself so I could look at her. When I finally could~ you survived for a reason. ~I was about to protest~ No, listen, remember our talk before? ~I nodded~ This tragedy happened for a reason. Yes, it, in your words, sucks that it had to happen, but it did, and there's nothing we can do about it now. You're here with us now, your friends, and we'll never let you go. We can fight alongside you if monsters spawn. We'll even help you fight your inner demons if you'll let us. You have support, lean on us Lucky. Please, let us help. Will you let us help?" I felt like I could cry all over again, but not of sadness, or grief, or anger. These new tears would be tears of thankfulness. I'm so thankful for Ianite, being the voice of reason in my tough time.

"Only you and Sparky...", I managed to say.

"Fair enough. Excuse us everyone. I would like Sparklez and I to help Lucky sort things out before you all go on your mission. Dianite, could you come too? You might have some information that might be helpful." Dianite nodded. Ianite helped me stand.

"Sparklez and I will meet you both on the top of the tower.", Dianite said. Ianite nodded then Sparklez and Dianite flew toward the top of the tower as Ianite led me to the boats at the edge of Tom's island. She got in first, then I climbed in afterward. During our trip,

"Thank you Ianite... like you, I don't know how you heard me, but I'm glad you did..."

"I am too." When we got to the island, Ianite got out of the boat and helped me out. She put her arm around my shoulders as a gesture of support and we went up the many stairs to the very top of the tower. When we got to her throne,

"Wait here Lucky. I'm going to move my throne and expand it so you can sit with me." I was surprised, as was Sparky and Dianite. Wow, even Dianite's surprised? This must be something she never does. Well, I mean, I can understand that. Why would she, a goddess, share her throne with a common person? She moved her throne area over to the back 'curve' of the tower, facing Tom's island and made it a two seater. She decorated it how it was before then came over to me and gently led me over to it and we both sat. She took one of my hands in both of hers, letting me know she's there for me.

"Ok Dianite, what do you know?", she asked. Sparky stood on Ianite's other side, protective.

"Lucky, this was supposed to happen. Your arrival was foretold a long time ago. Why didn't Ianite or Mianite know? I found the prophecy and kept it to myself. Lucky, you're one of the key parts to this whole thing. You have special abilities that no one else, except for the one who wrote the prophecy long ago, has. Not even us gods. You're psychic, you can project your voice without knowing it, that's how we heard you but you weren't even loud.

"You can tell when others are lying, you can even see in lava. You can probably even breathe in it. Who knows with that potion your father was working on that gave you the ability to withstand lava and see in it. You're also extremely lucky, hence your name. Now, before you say anything, luck can be bad too. What needed to happen was tragic, and some bad luck, but I reiterate, it needed to happen. We never would have met you otherwise. We would have had no need to come to your main land village. Everything about you is in this prophecy.

"You can sense danger and sense presences. You can also read soul fire. Soul fire reading is something that's never been done before, nor has normal fire reading. You can have visions of the near future. Ianite was right when she said that you're special. You are special Lucky. Take pride in yourself. You can do things no mere mortal, and even things we gods, can't do. We can't read minds. You can. We can't feel others' emotions, you can. In general, we aren't psychic. To know what someone's true intentions are, we can pick up on signs in their body language, but you know right off the bat.

"We can't know when someone is lying for sure, again, all comes down to body language and the 'tells' for lying, but you know with 100% certainty. Lucky Fire, we need you. You're the key part to restoring balance in this world. The elemental stones are also a key part in restoring balance. Now, you'll have people wanting to stop you, do not let them get to you. Be yourself, stand your ground. You need to practice your powers Lucky. Sparklez, help her practice, Ianite, you too.

"She can tell if a god or goddess is lying too. We are not exempt from her powers. No one is. Before you ask Lucky, no, you're not a mystical being such as a goddess, but you are a good candidate for priestess. A human with such powers as yours would be a great addition to the priestess line. You'd be a middle ground between humans and gods, just like Dec is. Lucky Fire, practice your powers, I can not stress this enough. Ianite, when she's ready, ask her if she accepts the title of Priestess. You'll know when she's ready. Now, you know what I know. Any questions?"

"Do I have a choice in the matter?", I asked quietly.

"No."

"Well... then that means I need to get my shit together and do the best job that I can. I will work hard. Dianite, Ianite doesn't need to ask me if I'm ready to accept the title of Priestess. I accept. I'll do it for my village. I will carry the honor of my village on my shoulders. They will not have all died in vain. I will only speak to Ianite though... I was her follower before the Priestess of all gods. That will never change." Ianite gently squeezed my hand and smiled at me for that comment. I grinned back.

"If that's what you wish. You can be a follower of Ianite while being Priestess, you don't need to give up your following. As a Priestess, if you're to follow a certain god, you need to pledge your full allegiance to them. You can interact with other gods though you know. You know that you're loyal only to Ianite, that should be enough for you to interact with Mianite or I. There are rules for a Priestess or Priest as well on pledging allegiance to a certain god. It needs to be a public thing. People need to know that this world's Priest or Priestess has sworn allegiance to one single god. We'll worry about that when you have perfected your powers though. Anything else?"

"No, I think that's it. Practice my powers, pledge my allegiance publicly to Ianite, and do whatever it takes to help restore the balance to this world... hoo boy, it's not a long list, but the things on the list are no small things. The fate of the world rests on me... but I can do it. With Sparky and Ianite by my side, cheering me on, being my support, I can do anything. Alongside Karl and Tom as well. I'm not forgetting them. They have a part in this too."

"Glad to hear that you're positive about this. Now, you need to go on this mission. Both you and Sparky, go."

"Before we do ~turns to Ianite~ I need to know, why were you acting strange a few nights ago?"

"No big reason. Just... need to sort some things out." Half lie. Whoa, being able to tell if someone is lying is a strange new feeling... I wonder... will I gain all my abilities that Dianite listed off all at once, or will they come one at a time, starting with lie detecting?

"Ok, that was a half lie. It's true, you need to sort some things out, but the reason is bigger than you want to admit." Ianite looked surprised, though, I don't know why she would be. She literally just found out I can tell if someone, even a god or goddess, is lying.

"Well... Lucky... I don't really feel comfortable sharing..." I gave her a gentle smile and laid my free hand on both of hers.

"Alright. You don't have to. At least I know the reason behind your strange behaviour. I hope you figure things out soon my lady. ~I took my hand off Ianite's, we both stood up, Ianite let go of my hand, and I hugged Ianite closely~ Thank you so much again Ianite. I feel like I can never thank you enough for everything you've done for me. I know it's your duty as my goddess, but still, I can express my thankfulness. ~I let go of the hug~ It really helped talking to you all those times that I did. Your speech just before coming here helped me. You're right. I do have survivor's guilt. I'm going to do my best to get better with your and Sparky's help. I won't bother you a lot though. You're a goddess, you have better things to do than be bothered by my problems all the time. How about this, I call on you if I feel down and Sparky's not here to talk to?"

"That sounds good, and Lucky, ~puts both hands on my shoulders and gives me a stern look~ you are not a bother. Don't think that for a second. I may be a goddess, but you said it yourself, it's my duty as your goddess to help you with whatever you might be facing. ~gets a gentler look~ Lucky, feel free to call on me if you ever feel the need to. I won't be bothered by you. Now, ~grins~ go out there and kick some tail for me huh? Make me proud out there." She let go of my shoulders. I grin right back.

"You bet my lady. Sparky, let's go." Sparky grinned at me and we both leapt off the tower, Elytra'ing to Tom's island.