Tangled

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209 Ava: Moon Goddess (II)

209 Ava: Moon Goddess (II)

Traveling like this is nothing like appearing in Sister Miriam's home. O

It's just a rush of white and nothing.

A lack of sound.

There's no wind. No air to breathe. And yet I don't suffocate in its absence, almost as if I don't need to breathe at all.

Even so, I'm falling.

I can feel it deep in my soul.

Until I crash into a nebulous something and the world coalesces around me again.

The world blinks into focus, and I find myself somewhere... else. Somewhere decidedly not my room at the lodge.

I spin slowly, taking in my new surroundings. Towering rock cliffs encircle me, their jagged peaks reaching into an impossibly blue sky, uninterrupted by even a wisp of cloud. The air carries a crisp, clean scent, untainted by the usual odors of civilization. It fills my lungs with a refreshing coolness that I've never felt before, Something I may never experience again.

In the center of this hidden vale, a crystalline pond sparkles, its aqua waters more vivid than any I've seen before. The surface is still, like a polished mirror reflecting the heavens above. I'm drawn to it, my feet moving of their own accord until I stand at the water's edge.

As

209 Ava: Moon Goddess (1)

Stare into the mesmerizing depths, a thought drifts through mind-that this place is imbued with magic. It's a strange

that feels undeniably true. The

unseen energy, making my skin

because it is," a melodic voice says from behind me. "It's the

ethereal. Silver hair spills over her shoulders, puddling against the ground. And yet there's no

eyes? Bright and colorless. Inhuman. And yet somehow

the secrets of the universe, a

ask, my voice sounding small

The woman

step closer, her movements fluid and graceful. "I am known by many names," she says, her voice like a soothing lullaby. "But you may call me Selena. And this," she gestures to our surroundings, "is a reflection

make sense of her words. "My inner

understand."

your veins is ancient and potent. This place is a manifestation of that

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Moon

children to bring

all. "What drought? The world is

that would be

I hesitate, my mind reeling. But something deep within me, a part of myself

this woman is

one person she can be in this

is warm and smooth, and a tingling sensation spreads up my arm at the contact. Selena smiles, her eyes sparkling with otherworldly light. "Come," she says, gently tugging me towards the pond. "Let me show you the

my usual self, I see a glowing figure, radiant with an inner light. Selena's reflection stands beside mine, her own form shimmering. She's a vast light, contained

still.

is wild, like a living fire in the

a

yourself, Ava," Selena murmurs, her voice seeming to echo from the very rocks around

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Ava: Moon Goddess