the ground rushing up toward me. Iâm in an upright position so my face isnât in danger of smacking the dirt first. And with a light muffled sound my bare feet touch the ground as if Iâd just taken a step out of my window and landed down here.
Walk with me, the voice says.
Pulling my T-shirt down I shake off the first of the shivers and begin to walk. My boxers are short but my T-shirt is long, thankfully. That only means I probably look like some girly dork walking outside in the middle of the night in myunderwear, no less. I donât see anybody around so I guess I donât have to worry about being razzed about this tomorrow on the bus.
In another time and place there was a goddess who ruled over everything.
Styx, I volunteer, eager to show I know something at least.
She ruled my world, bringing the strongest of gods to their knees before her.
Who are you?
I am that from which your power was born.
I thought our powers came from the weather. Thatâs what Fatima said.
The Messenger can only tell you so much. She cannot tip the scales. She could just as easily have been a messenger of dark. Styx has control of her.
So Fatima lied to us. Is that what youâre telling me?
I am telling you that there is more to know.
Like what?
You are very powerful because my displeasure with her was great. That is why the storms grow so violent. She controls the sun and the moon, the power that surges from both. Her plan was to create an army to fight against me. With my own power, I add to the intensity, the heat, the heart of every storm.
So our power is from both of you. Styx who is the light and you⦠my thought trails off.
I am the dark. And so are you.
I stop, right there my feet refuse to move. âI am not dark.â The words come out of my mouth before I can prevent them.
You have me inside of you. I know it. I have felt it.
No, I say, but feel just a bit of truth to the words.
You have felt it, too. You like the feeling. It is feeding your hungry soul.
I am a Mystyx. We were created to fight against the dark, in the name of Styx and her curse.
You do not even know what her curse is or its purpose.
I know that she cursed the dark. She is the light.
She is the goddess of the river that circles the Underworld. There is no light in the Underworld.
My toes curl into the drying grass. Iâd walked behind the houses close to the tracks but not crossing them where the woods awaited on the other side. There are sloping hills here, land not yet used for new construction. A few months back all this land was slotted to become a new club for the Richies, but Sasha put a stop to that. How sheâd done it she never said, but my family and the rest of the residents nearby had been able to keep our houses because of her. I was sort of thankful because that meant my dad and Pop Pop had a place to live. As for me, I donât want to stay here anyway.
All that aside, the voice withinâs words ring in my mind. What heâd just said made absolute sense. But how could that be?
So the goddess Styx is evil? Is that what youâre saying?
There is a blurry line between good and evil, light and dark, or whatever you wish to call it in this place. But yes, she is from the Underworld, therefore she is of a dark nature. And you are born of her.
Which meant I was dark? Or at least I think thatâs what heâs trying to tell me.
The other Mystyx are born of her, too. I still donât get what heâs trying to tell me.
They do not have the power you have.
This is true. All of us have different powers. But Iâm theonly one with an active power. Krystal is a medium, a power linked to her mind and her acceptance. Lindsey is telepathic, again, her power uses the mind, not a physical essence. Sasha, on the other hand, can move through space. But her powers have no effect on anyone other than her. I was the only one who could lift or move objects, hurt people.
You can do so
Walk with me, the voice says.
Pulling my T-shirt down I shake off the first of the shivers and begin to walk. My boxers are short but my T-shirt is long, thankfully. That only means I probably look like some girly dork walking outside in the middle of the night in myunderwear, no less. I donât see anybody around so I guess I donât have to worry about being razzed about this tomorrow on the bus.
In another time and place there was a goddess who ruled over everything.
Styx, I volunteer, eager to show I know something at least.
She ruled my world, bringing the strongest of gods to their knees before her.
Who are you?
I am that from which your power was born.
I thought our powers came from the weather. Thatâs what Fatima said.
The Messenger can only tell you so much. She cannot tip the scales. She could just as easily have been a messenger of dark. Styx has control of her.
So Fatima lied to us. Is that what youâre telling me?
I am telling you that there is more to know.
Like what?
You are very powerful because my displeasure with her was great. That is why the storms grow so violent. She controls the sun and the moon, the power that surges from both. Her plan was to create an army to fight against me. With my own power, I add to the intensity, the heat, the heart of every storm.
So our power is from both of you. Styx who is the light and you⦠my thought trails off.
I am the dark. And so are you.
I stop, right there my feet refuse to move. âI am not dark.â The words come out of my mouth before I can prevent them.
You have me inside of you. I know it. I have felt it.
No, I say, but feel just a bit of truth to the words.
You have felt it, too. You like the feeling. It is feeding your hungry soul.
I am a Mystyx. We were created to fight against the dark, in the name of Styx and her curse.
You do not even know what her curse is or its purpose.
I know that she cursed the dark. She is the light.
She is the goddess of the river that circles the Underworld. There is no light in the Underworld.
My toes curl into the drying grass. Iâd walked behind the houses close to the tracks but not crossing them where the woods awaited on the other side. There are sloping hills here, land not yet used for new construction. A few months back all this land was slotted to become a new club for the Richies, but Sasha put a stop to that. How sheâd done it she never said, but my family and the rest of the residents nearby had been able to keep our houses because of her. I was sort of thankful because that meant my dad and Pop Pop had a place to live. As for me, I donât want to stay here anyway.
All that aside, the voice withinâs words ring in my mind. What heâd just said made absolute sense. But how could that be?
So the goddess Styx is evil? Is that what youâre saying?
There is a blurry line between good and evil, light and dark, or whatever you wish to call it in this place. But yes, she is from the Underworld, therefore she is of a dark nature. And you are born of her.
Which meant I was dark? Or at least I think thatâs what heâs trying to tell me.
The other Mystyx are born of her, too. I still donât get what heâs trying to tell me.
They do not have the power you have.
This is true. All of us have different powers. But Iâm theonly one with an active power. Krystal is a medium, a power linked to her mind and her acceptance. Lindsey is telepathic, again, her power uses the mind, not a physical essence. Sasha, on the other hand, can move through space. But her powers have no effect on anyone other than her. I was the only one who could lift or move objects, hurt people.
You can do so
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