Early that morning, I woke to the golden light of dawn slipping through the trees. The air was cold, but peaceful.
Beside me, curled up on the forest floor, was the goddess.
Ashley.
Her divine aura had dimmed again not vanished, but quieter. Like a flame that still burned, but didn't want to be seen.
She was sleeping on her side, hands tucked under her chin, her long white hair tangled across her robe. Her face was turned slightly toward mine, and for once, there was no pride there.
Only shame.
When she opened her eyes, she didn't glow.
She just whispered, "Alex."
Not Vessel.
Not You.
Just my name.
And for a moment, that meant more than any blessing.
We broke camp shortly after that. The forest ahead was darker, thicker crawling with the kind of creatures that didn't fear gods or elves or glowing girls in stockings.
We were entering monster-infested grounds now, and our group was massive. Too many children. Too many wounded. Too few warriors.
Ashley stood in front of the gathered elves, her hands glowing faintly again.
"I want us to move in a square formation," she said.
She turned to one of the elf elders and handed him a glowing stone, etched with the same divine marks she had drawn into the dirt the night before.
"These are my marks," she said. "Place one on each corner of the group. Men will carry them on the outer sides. Women and elders in the second ring. Children in the center."
The elder nodded. "And these stones they will protect us?"
Ashley nodded. "Yes from most things."
"Most?"
She hesitated. "They will repel demons, beasts, corrupted spirits But not dragons."
The elder stiffened. "Why not dragons?"
Ashley looked up at the sky.
"Because I didn't create them."
The march began.
We moved slowly, the forest pressing in around us. Birds stopped singing after the first hour. Shadows moved in the trees. Ashley walked near the front with me, her light just enough to keep the weaker monsters at bay.
As we moved, I noticed something else.
Her glow had faded again.
Not just her aura her body. She looked smaller. Like she was shrinking.
"Hey," I said, glancing at her. "Why do you look… thinner?"
She didn't answer at first.
Then, without looking at me, she muttered, "Every time I use divine energy without receiving prayers I lose some of my form."
I stared at her. "So you're burning yourself away?"
She nodded slightly. "I can keep this form for a while. But not forever. I need faith to maintain it."
"And yet you're here," I said, "risking yourself for people who don't even know your name."
"People love me," she said quickly. "I just need to help them more, and I'll rise again. I'll be rich, like my brothers and sisters in the heavens."
I gave her a sharp look.
"Oh, you're just as delusional," I said, "as every girl who believed a liar."
She blinked. "What?"
"You know what I mean," I said. "A woman can grow up with a man who gave her everything love, loyalty, time. And still, she'll leave him for a smooth-talking guy with a fake promise. 'I'll buy you the world,' he says. And then dumps her within a week."
Ashley opened her mouth. "That's not the same"
"Yes, it is," I said. "That's what the heavens did to me. Three lives. Three lies. And now you stand here saying you'll rise again if people just love you enough."
She looked away.
"It's not about love," she whispered. "It's about power. About staying relevant. If I lose that"
"Then you're like the rest of us," I said. "Mortal."
Hours passed. We crossed a broken river and entered a canyon where roots twisted over bones and old swords. The ground was soaked in old blood, and the silence was loud.
At one point, something massive moved in the trees above us something with wings.
But it didn't come down.
Ashley's marks held strong.
The formation never broke.
Still I could see it in her eyes.
She was scared. Tired. Burning through power she didn't have.
Yet she walked.
Not floating. Not glowing.
Just walking.
For them.
When we camped that night, the elves sang softly to comfort their children. Small fires lit up the dark. Ashley sat by one, wrapping her robe tighter around her shoulders.
Well I was looking at those black stockings.
I sat beside her.
She didn't look up.
"Why did you call me Alex this morning?" I asked.
She didn't answer right away.
Then she said
"Because I was wrong," she said finally. "You're not just a vessel. You're a person."
"And?"
"And I don't want to use people anymore."
We sat in silence again.
The goddess stared into the fire.
"You know," she whispered, "I used to think I'd be a queen among gods. That I'd have my own worlds.
My own worshippers. But now"
"Now?"
She looked down
"Now I just want to protect this one village. This one tree."
Her voice cracked a little.
"I'm tired of pretending I'm divine."
(I fill pain too)
I glanced at her.
"You're still glowing, you know."
She smiled faintly. "Yeah. But this time, it's not for the heavens."
But?
it's because this elves. Believed that I will find them a home.