"Thank you." She sprawls out on the grass and closes her eyes.
I place my hands on her chest, and it takes mere seconds for her soul to pass through me. Finally, she's found peace. I stand and transport back to Luke's office.
Dax is putting all of the weapons back in the hidden closet, and Luke is working on papers at his desk.
"Sorry it took longer than I expected." I avoid Charlie's body in the corner because first, I need to deal with the two of them before I make the big decision about Charlie.
"It's about damn time." Dax scowls at me as the light shines through his soul even brighter.
"What's gotten into you?" Luke arches an eyebrow and points at him. "You're acting different."
"His soul is fracturing like Becca's." I'm so tired that I don't have time to sugar coat all of this. "Since he died, his being here is causing an unbalance. He will spiral away just like Becca did."
"So how do we fix it?" Dax's tone is full of angst. "I don't want to go down that same road."
"Someone needs to reap you again so you can finally land in your resting place." The words feel like sandpaper as they pass through my throat, but he deserves to know what's going on. Becca thought she was going crazy. I don't want him to have to endure that.
"But I still need him." Luke throws his pen on the table and stands. "We still have a lot of work to do."
"It's easy to be selfish when you aren't the one being impacted." What is it with all of these people? I'm the youngest one in this room, but it sure doesn't seem that way considering how everyone is acting. I need to help Dax. "I can reap you if you're ready."
Silence descends upon us, but Dax shakes his head no. "I'm not ready. Not yet. I still have some time, and I need to help Luke clean up the council. When I get bad, I'll ask you to do it then."
"That's true. Luke is going to need help." I hate to admit it, but Dax isn't nearly as bad off as Becca, so he does have more time.
"Yes, I need help getting the corrupted elders off the council." Luke places his hand on the table and bites his lip. "Are you going to resume your abilities now that you're back? I could really use your help."
"The temptation would be too strong to the other elders and Brad's council if I didn't step down." I've had enough drama, and the less I have to deal with people manipulating me for their own personal gains, the better. "No agency or person should have direct access to this power inside me. For some reason, I was destined for this, but I can't let it corrupt me."
"But think of all you can do..." Luke lifts both hands up and shivers.
"See what I mean. You need to find someone else to take over my spot." Even being this close to me gets him excited about what I can do. "Clean up the current council, or I will do it for you."
He swallows hard, his Adam's apple bobbing. "I'll get on it." He glances at Charlie and then back at me. "Dax, there is no time like the present. Do you want to go tell the other elders what happened?"
"Yeah, let's do it. After all that's happened, I could use some entertainment." Dax hugs me and heads out the door.
When I'm all alone, my eyes go to Charlie. My time is running out, but I don't want him to go through what Becca did. I make my way next to him and touch his hand. It's cold as ice which is just wrong. He's warm and comforting, not stiff and frozen. I don't know how to go on without him.
The artifacts’ strands, reaper magic, and healing powers begin coursing through me at the same time. All of the other times this happened were when they were rebelling because I was unbalanced. But now, with the addition of the water, they are moving in harmony.
A light flashes inside me, and then I realize what I have to do. If I'm willing to entangle my soul with his, it'll prevent the fracture from occurring. This can only be done once because if it’s done too many times, my soul won't be strong enough to hold the power inside me. I push it out toward him, allowing the healing power to take a small chunk of my soul. We'll be linked forever, but I'm okay with this; he's my one and only.
When my power floods into him, it courses throughout him and brings his soul back. As soon as it comes back, I see that it's already cracked, but my healing power mends his soul with my piece. It covers his crack and latches on to his, blending them into one. As soon as it's pieced together, my powers return to me.
He’s silent for a moment, but then his chest begins to move, and his hazel eyes open. He blinks a few times and then glances around. "Chris?" His voice is weak.
"Yes?" I take his hand and squeeze it. I hope he's going to be okay with me bringing him back.
"Am I alive?" He sits up and looks around. "Wait... Are we back on Earth? But the Water Artifact."
"It's over. I found the artifact, and now I'm whole." My palms become sweaty. Maybe I made a mistake. "You died, and I found a way to bring you back whole."
His face turns thoughtful, and then he throws his arms around me. "Thank God. I've been wanting to get back to you the entire time." He pulls me against him and kisses my lips.
"Also, I found Beth and released her soul." He needs to know this. She’s his sister after all. "She
