Point and Time

Chapter 17: Macie: Where Do We Go From Here

Seth had yet to wake from when they left to enter the Edge Rift and then exit it. He hadn't even moved. I was trying hard to focus on what was happening but with Seth just laying there I couldn't help but not be in my all-in mode right now. I wanted him to be okay but nothing I could do would take my focus off of him being not around. We didn't even know if he was alive or not. Well, the good news was that the four who went in came out plus, a dog. The pup was lying down on the floor between the front row and the driver's row. He was a cutie.

After hearing the prophecy I couldn't help but think what it could have meant. 'Separation is a worse enemy than the one you hunt.' There was something worse than Gornid and not only that, it wasn't even a thing we could fight. It was us not being by each other's side? Don't get me wrong without Seth showing up at the mall we would have all been dead but I didn't think it was going to happen again soon. 

My eyes were getting groggy and I could tell I was going to fall asleep soon but there wasn't a good time for that. I wished I could just go back to my bed and wake up there but instead, I haven't slept a full eight hours in almost three days and someone who I've grown up with all of a sudden is just lying here fighting for his life. 

"Hey, Macie get some rest, I can take the Seth watch." Ethan tapped me on the shoulder and smiled, which was welcoming because I felt that I hadn't seen a smile in a very long time.

"Yeah, that's not a bad idea, is it? heh." I said as I felt the bags under my eyes begin to feel like grocery bags filled to the top. I scooted over so that Ethan could sit next to us and I put my hand on Seth's as soon as my eyes closed I was out.

The second I fell asleep I began to dream about something horrid. We were all wearing armor, including Lezlie. Seth's eyes filled with lightning, Chase's hands on fire. Everyone whose powers we knew, I could see them using their powers readied for battle. Me, Ever, Emily, and Ari just held our weapons at the ready. I looked across the same dark figure from my dream before. The one who had killed us all. Except he held a sword made of fire in one hand and a red crystalline blade in the other. One weapon for quick attacks, the other for hitting hard up close. We all charged and a battle ensued between us and other creatures. We held them off but while we did Fig had told Seth, Chase, and Ethan to go for the bigger guy. 

Once we dealt with all the monsters we ran to try and catch up which was the worst part of all of this. I looked to see Ethan on the ground as Seth ran at the figure. His axe clashed with the big sword and as it did the other sword readied to go through Seth. "Seth!" Ethan shouted from the ground and he tossed his shuriken to him. Seth caught it and clashed with the sword and as he did a boom happened sending them away from each other. Seth was on his feet holding the shuriken and the axe perfectly like he had done this before, while the beast was standing near Ethan.

"You don't learn, do you? Being selfish is sometimes the ONLY way to get the things you want done, done. You can't be selfless. It's ridiculous. Why do you think everyone always fails? They don't do the selfish thing! They don't protect themselves! That's why you won't win!" The beast finished.

"No. You don't understand. I was never going to be the one to beat you. I am not the guy to make the big play or make the final swing. He, on the other hand, is the type of person to do that and he always will be. He is selfless. It was just time for me to follow suit. It's gotta be tiring to do that. It was never going to be me to end this fight. You don't win, but some of us also lose. That's the truth. Eli already lost, his battle is done. Maybe I'm next, but you are shortly after that." As he said that the beast laughed at him and his sword sank into Ethan. 

Seth shouted and threw his axe full of lightning into the beast and he didn't miss. He ran up to him yanked the axe out and shoved it right back into his chest. The beast dropped the two swords and looked at Seth. I watched as the remaining life in Ethan's eyes drained. 

"Mac...Macie take good care of this guy huh?" He said tapping Seth on the chest. "I love you guys, keep going, keep doing the right thing. Y'all are a good group of individuals." His hand that was on Seth's chest fell. He died right in front of us. I woke up and as I did I felt Seth move and he jumped out shouting "ETHAN!" 

He nearly jumped out of the moving van until he realized Ethan was sitting next to him. Which was really odd because I just had a dream about something happening to Ethan. Once he finally stopped having a heart attack I welcomed him back to the land of the living. 

"Welcome back buddy." Ethan smiled and patted his back.

"Yeah, god do my ribs still hurt. ow." He lifted his shirt and one of his sides had a bruise from his hip to his chest that looked pretty bad. 

"Yeah, ouch," I said lightly hovering over the bruise and it looked like it was starting to heal as I did but it went back to how it was when I lifted my hand so I put my hand back on it. It started to fully disappear. I was confused because what was purple and black was now just a normal skin tone on Seth's body. 

"How did you just?" He asked and as I looked to the front I heard Fig giggle. 

"May I formally introduce you blokes to the daughter of Phanes, Macie." He smiled.

"I'll be damned." Emily smiled as she looked at me.

It did kind of make sense. I loved helping people. I helped recover any injured animals that the zoo I worked at needed and oh my god I had a job that I forgot about, I am so fired it's not even funny. With little to no clue as to what was supposed to happen, I was not sure how I was supposed to train my powers but I doubt that was the point of interest. We ended up at the place we were before going to the Edge Rift. Her father opened the garage and smiled because he saw his daughter behind the wheel again. She hopped out and hugged him.

It was a moment of reunion. The dog even got up and started running circles around because he had been stuck in a van for a couple of hours. Following suit he also peed in the corner of the garage which made sense. the people who stayed on the Earth side of the Edge Rift hugged those who went in. Seth hugged us and vice versa because well he was pretty much dead. We hiked downstairs to where the arena was. The floor was back to how it was just a huge open stadium with steel walls.

"Well folks, We've got a lot to talk about huh? For starters. Ari, Emily, and Ever you lot are one of Theia, Boreas, and Hades' sons or daughters. Who is which, couldn't tell ya. I know we can do this though. Which is more than I could've said for us." He pointed at him and Lezlie as she made an 'excuse me' face.

"Okay, you know what I meant. Our group was a very specific squad that felt like we just got picked. You lot are very well put together. You blend well, and you care for each other. That's why we push you so hard. We need you to get this done, but we can, and we will." Fig said proudly.

"I agree," Seth added immediately after. "We know he has no more inside sources right? With Eli gone he has no one is left to betray us. At least I would like to hope."

"I think you'd be right to assume that. We gotta do whatever it is that needs to be done in order to make sure you are all ready for whenever he shows up. If he does show up we have to be ready because he won't hold back, at all." Lezlie butted in. I thought back to the dream of Ethan being murdered in front of us.

"Then what do we have to do to make sure that happens?" I asked.

"We train ever harder, we work as hard as possible to get to where we need to be. Once we are we'll know. I swear it." Fig began to pull his swords out and sharpen them. 

"Well folks, per usual. Let's get to work then eh?" Seth smiled as he hit the training course button on the area set up. The ground sunk and got replaced with target practice and multiple other things to help practice aim, strength, and durability. We were ready to push ourselves to the limit for this, for the world. We had to be ready.