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

one that feels undeniably true. The very

unseen energy, making my skin

it is," a melodic voice says from behind me.

face the speaker. A woman stands before me, her beauty almost ethereal. Silver hair spills over her shoulders, puddling against the ground. And yet there's no frizz. Not a single hair out of place. Impossible, with that

and colorless. Inhuman. And

with eyes that seem to hold the secrets of

I ask, my voice sounding small in the vastness of this place. "Where

The woman

says, her voice like a soothing lullaby. "But you may call me Selena. And this," she gestures to our surroundings, "is a

of her words.

understand."

power, Ava Grey. The magic that flows through your veins is ancient and potent. This place is a manifestation of that magic, a sanctuary created by your own soul. This world has been screaming in drought,

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215

Moon

to

sense at all. "What drought? The world is thriving." At

I suppose that would be how humans

reeling. But something deep within me, a part of myself I've

identity of this

she can be in

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

self, I see a glowing figure, radiant with an inner light. Selena's reflection stands beside mine, her own

still.

glow is wild, like a living fire in

between a

from the very rocks around us. "Embrace the

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Ava: Moon