Life Finds a Way

Chapter 13

Clarissa sat up in the darkness once again. This time she didn't panic, instead she waited for the tell-tale green wisps to start floating around her. When they did she smiled. She hadn't been certain this was another visit with Minerva so soon, but she had hoped it was. This time when the Goddess finally arrived Clarissa was waiting for her. "Minerva." She greeted the Goddess with a respectful nod of her head. "I'm glad you called me here. I have so many questions."

"And I will answer all I can child. Please be mindful that our time here is limited. I can keep you here longer this time, but you cannot stay too long." Minerva had a grave look on her beautiful face as she gave her warnings up front.

"I will try to ask the important things first then. I know you said I am supposed to save Genesis and the others, but I haven't got the slightest clue on where to start, how to keep myself from being imprisoned, or even when in the timeline I am. Is the really bad stuff just around the corner?" Clarissa had many other questions but if she was going to be sent back before she could ask them all, then these were probably the most important ones.

"I cannot tell you what you must do to succeed. If it were that simple we would not be here now. You must use your unique perspective to alter the timeline you know to save the planet from catastrophe. I will aid you as much as I am able. You cannot afford to fail. As for the timeline, there is a major event that involves my knight that could be pinpointed as the beginning of the fall for all of them. That event is still several months from now. You must use the time you have to prevent it from happening."

Clarissa didn't say anything for a few minutes. She understood Minerva's reference well enough, she had to somehow stop Genesis from getting injured. How to do that though was anyone's guess. As she was mulling over this quandary something else that Minerva had said stuck out. "You've said a couple of times now that I can't afford to fail. Obviously, I will do everything I can to prevent that from happening, but you say it like you are desperate."

Minerva didn't answer right away, and when she finally did Clarissa wished she hadn't asked. "You are not the first to be brought here in such a fashion. There are many parallel universes to this one, yours being one of them. I have pulled people from across many of them. However, I have come to the end of my power. I have reset the timeline countless times now with many different people. All of them have failed; some never even survived the creation of their bodies. If you fail I will not have the power to try again. This planet and all of its inhabitants will be doomed to annihilation within a few short centuries at best."

"Not the first? Why? Why me?" Clarissa hadn't even allowed herself to think about the life she was leaving but wondering why it had been her out of all the universes sat heavy on her shoulders.

Minerva's gaze was still calm as she answered. "Each person I have brought has had at least one strong quality, strength of character, strength of will, strong determination. You are no exception. If you have not realized your own strengths yet, you will need to find them to survive."

"Well, shit." The curse was mumbled under her breath but she felt her face heat as she realized she was still in the presence of a Goddess. "Fine, if you can't guide me then how will you be helping me?"

"I cannot pull you here often, this will already be a strain on you since it is the third time in as many days, but I will be able to send you messages with any helpful information. How you use them will be up to you."

Clarissa was silent again as she tried to process all the information she had been given. She had a feeling her time here was drawing to a close and wanted to get as much out of this visit as possible. Another question struck her as she thought on all that had been said. "You said others didn't survive the formation of their bodies? Is that why I look so... weird, because you formed this body?"