The Burning Candle

Connections

Ava was back meditating on the rock again. She inhaled deeply. Everything is connected, she told herself. Balance is essential. There must always be balance. Fire with water. Air with Earth. Shadows with light. Without balance there is chaos. She exhaled. Life depends on the elements. Heat for plants to grow. Plants to feed the animals. Light for day. Darkness for night. Air and water are essential for each life force to survive. She inhaled again. Gods are essential too. She froze in her recital of the Code. Gods. What could it mean, her God following her? What ‘great destiny’ could she have? It was heroes that had the god-made life plans. She was a monk. Less- she a monk-in-training. She took another deep breath. Calm, she told herself. Patience is everything. She smiled, remembering something a friend had told her once – ‘Patience is a virtue I don’t have time for.’

“What are you smiling about?” a voice asked behind her.

She froze again. It was him. She didn’t respond. Her breath came quicker and shallower.

She heard him give a low chuckle. She closed her eyes, using her magic to sense him. He walked closer to her, coming up behind her. He was shorter than her, even when she was sitting down. She opened her eyes again and sighed. She couldn’t exactly ignore him. She turned on the rock to face him.

He smiled back at her, making her feel warm inside. She looked down at her hands. He reached out to touch her cheek and she stopped breathing. He leant closer to her.

“Breathe.” He whispered to her, and she did. The air felt cooler all of a sudden. She wondered if it was his presence, or it was just the lack of air that made it seem that way. A bit of both, she rationalized. He grinned at her, and she smiled back sheepishly, forgetting for a second that he was actually her God and she had dedicated her life to serving him.

“The smile?” he asked again.

“Oh.” She said, unsure how to talk to him now she knew who he was. “A memory.”

He frowned at her. “Hmm.”

She looked down again, worried she may have disappointed him in some way. She waited. Her heart was faster than usual, and her emotions were askew. What does one do when confronted with ones God?

There was a silence. She wondered if he would talk or just disappear again. She looked up again, to find him staring curiously at her. She blinked at him, and he gave her another heart-warming smile. He leant in and kissed her forehead.

“I’ll be back,” he whispered into her ear, before disappearing into mist.