Shattered Souls (23 page)

Maddie began humming
, and I slowly turned my head toward her. My breathing quickened as I realized what Angela and I were about to do. I craned my head so I could see Angela one last time, the body I would be inhabiting. My eyes connected with Angela’s as she attempted to do the same. We exchanged smiles and turned our attention back to Maddie who continued to hum.

She
opened the pouches and emptied the contents out onto a silver tray. She had a small, clear glass bowl and a scoop smaller than a teaspoon that she moved next to the tray. Her humming changed to a long, drawn out chant. It wasn’t anything that I recognized. I watched her scoop a spoonful of each powder into the bowl. She added liquid and then lit it on fire.

Maddie
held the glass bowl that should have been far too hot to touch and began gliding around the room, releasing the smoke. The crescendos of Maddie’s voice coincided with her movements as I watched her come near Angela and me. She placed the glass bowl on the corner of the table as it continued to burn and sat down on her knees. She grabbed my hand and Angela’s hand. My breathing began to steady as I listened to the cadence in her voice as the beats became hypnotic. The deeper my breaths became, the more shared they became. I closed my eyes and let the song enter my mind as the feelings of an otherness drifted over me.

I not only heard the pace of Angela’s breathing, I could feel it. The tempo of her heartbeat began to interfere with my own as Maddie’s voice drifted into my
subconscious. The steady beats of our two hearts began colliding with one another. Unable to decipher who belonged to the timing of which, I let my mind empty of worry. It didn’t matter whose pulse was whose. Instead I let the new pattern emerge that bound us together.

I no longer felt the burden of the shell I was in as my spirit drifted above my body.
I looked down at the emptiness that was left and was shocked to see the lifeless me on the couch. A shock ran through me, which I realized I had to fight. Now was not the time to pontificate on anything other than the transition.

My spirit guided itself a
long the ceiling. Seeing Maddie’s hands still intertwined with Angela’s and mine, I slowly drifted toward my new home. I was in no hurry, but I didn’t know how long it was taking either. There was no sense of time in this realm, only action within its prescribed intent. Not being tied to certain specifications was a wondrous feeling. I wouldn’t say I was lackadaisical, but I certainly wasn’t that driven.

As I got closer to Angela’s body, I felt a warmth and a pull that I wasn’t expecting.
A current began sweeping me swiftly toward Angela and I had no control over it. I slinked along the couch until an electrical charge popped me into Angela unexpectedly.

I opened my eyes and felt the heaviness of the flesh and bones that was entrapping me once more. I turned my head toward the wall
, and there was no mirror behind me. I really had fled into Angela’s body. I took a deep breath in, and oddly enough, things smelled differently. I noticed the mustiness of the flooring, and the dust in the cushions beneath me. I did remember Angela often talking about allergies, but I’d never really thought about it much until now.

A tickle in my nose s
urfaced and I scrunched my face, trying to avoid a sneeze. I sat up and looked over at Angela and gasped. Even though I knew I was expecting to see my body, there was no way to actually prepare for it. Angela sat up quickly and turned to face me.

“Your nose is clear,” Angela said
, and Trevor started laughing. “Do you know how amazing it is to breathe out of a clear nose?”

“The things I took for granted.” I wiggled my nose again and realized exactly what she was referring to.

“This is so crazy,” she said, hopping up.

“
Whoop. Not so fast there,” Maddie said, as Angela started to fall backward onto the couch. “Your balance isn’t as good as you think.”

I looked over to where my mom had been sitting and the chaises were empty.

“Where’d they go?” I asked, furrowing my brow.

“They got hungry for dinner. We weren’t sure how long you’d be in the transitional phase so I told—”

“Dinner?” I interrupted. “We got here in the morning. There was no way we were out for that many hours.”

“
No kidding,” Angela said, slipping her legs under her. “It felt like minutes, tops.”

I nodded in agreement.

“When did they leave?” I questioned, not really liking the idea of being alone with Maddie for all that long.

“About an hour ago,” she said. “I’m sure they’ll be back soon. Besides you’re not ready to leave yet.
Your new bodies haven’t completely acclimated to their new spirits or vice versa, and there are a few things you’ll want to read before you leave the undercity. I don’t want you coming back in pieces.”

“That can happen?” Angela asked, her eyes widening.

“It’s not the easiest of things to put back together,” Maddie replied grimly. “But as long as you follow these simple rules, there’s not a chance of that happening at all.” She walked over to a cabinet and grabbed a large book and brought it over to us. She placed it on the coffee table and smiled.

“We have to read the entire thing?” I asked.

“No, just the first chapter on the
Transitus
. That’s the type of spirit or body swap that you two managed to pull off,” she replied.

I got up slowly and paced myself as I walked the couple of feet to sit next to Angela. I lowered myself onto the couch and gave Angela a big hug.

“Thank you for doing this,” I whispered.

“Are you kidding? This is the coolest,” she s
aid, letting go.

I had to look away quickly as her eyes locked onto mine
, because they weren’t her eyes, they were mine. She was just borrowing them. This was going to be far more difficult to swallow than I realized. I wondered if she was experiencing the same level of possessiveness as me.

“One other piece of advice,
” Maddie said. “Don’t trust anyone going forward, except each other.”

Chapter 28

“I’m sorry! I just can’t do it,” Trevor said laughing, throwing up his hands at Angela.

She scowled at him a
nd pulled her arms into a tight formation across her chest. He tried to free her arms, but she wasn’t having it.

I kind of saw his point and was thankful that he admitted
there was a creepiness to this whole switcheroo. Not wanting to infuriate Angela anymore, I made sure no smile surfaced on my lips as she continued snuffing Trevor’s jokes.

“You should be relieved I don’t want to get with you right now. Come on. I can’t help it. It’s just not right,”
Trevor continued.

“Not even one kiss?” she asked. “Why’s that a big deal? It’s still me.
After all I’ve been through for you guys and you’re repulsed? I don’t know what that really means for our future.”

Oh my Lord, Trevor had
his hands full.

“In all fairness, you should be happy he’s uncomfortable with it. Now you know there’s no deep
seated desire to make out with me if he and I are ever alone.” I winked, laughing as I saw the crease in her frown begin to give way.

Her hands dropped to her side, and she nodded. “Good point.”

“See? That’s all I was getting at.” Trevor sighed, raising his finger to his temple, acting like he was pulling a trigger.

Jenny stifled a giggle and glanced at Angela before sitting on the couch.

“What was all that hullabaloo I heard?” A woman who looked close to my age stepped out from behind a green, velvet curtain. Her hair was dark brown, and her eyes were amber, catlike. “I was trying to practice and I finally had to give up.”

She scanned me quickly but then let her gaze linger on
Trevor, which made my skin prickle. Yep. I was definitely in Angela’s body.

“I’m sorry. Who are you?” I asked, attempting to wrangle her attention away from
Trevor.

“I’m
Sarah.” She took two steps toward us and extended her hand, letting it hover in between Trevor and me. I grabbed it instantly and shook it.

“I’m
Angela and this is Trevor,” I said and then I stopped myself. Maybe I should say I’m Triss right now. I didn’t really know.

“I know who you are.” She smiled coyly. “So what was all that
racket? It really messed up my day.”

“Just
getting used to things,” I said, not looking at her.

“Whatever, Triss. There are more than
just you three here. Be mindful of that,” Sarah scolded.

“So you know we switched and
I’m not really Angela?” I asked, ignoring her unpleasantness.

“Yes
, and I really don’t care,” she said.

“We’ll try to be quieter,” Trevor said.
I could tell he only wanted her to get out of here and so did I.

“Good. Since I’m over here
, I might as well go over what Maddie asked me to talk to you all about,” she said flatly.

“Well
, that sounds like it’ll be a treat,” Angela said, folding her arms across her chest again.

Sarah
shot her a scowl, but that didn’t slow her down. “Now I assume you know the kind of danger you’re facing by pulling this stunt.”

“I’d like to think more thought went into it than a typical stunt. But yes, we’re very well aware of it,” I responded.

She laughed a wicked laugh and shook her head.

“You’ll be lucky to co
me out alive,” she said, waiting for a reaction.

“Now. Now,” Maddie
chimed in from down the hallway. She walked in with my mom, Ellsy, and Vieta and took a seat on the chaise lounge. “There’s no need for lecturing. And you really need to be more respectful to Triss.”

My stomach knotted and the awkwardness in the room couldn’t be missed.
I caught my mom’s glance as she attempted to hide a smile from Sarah.

What did
my mom know?

“I apologize, Maddie,”
Sarah said bowing her head slightly. “The guardians have long been the legend and myth which have guided our ways of life.”

“Maybe I
do need to be lectured,” I interrupted, twisting my lips into a frown. “But guardians of what in particular?”

“
The guardians of the natural world, of course,” Sarah replied, shifting her gaze from me to Maddie.

“Your lineage points you directly to Artemis, Goddess of the hunt. Unfortunately
, that title has been misunderstood for thousands of years, but judging by the stories we’ve heard about you in your younger years especially, you had natural abilities connecting with animals.” Sarah raised her brow at me. “Is that true?”

I nodded.

“Well, the Guardians never go far. They never leave our earth, but they aren’t always available as transitions begin, which can wreak havoc, and the transitions can last hundreds of years,” Sarah said, pressing her lips together.

“Transitions?” I questioned.

“The transition occurs when they’ve chosen a new dwelling for their powers,” Sarah replied.

“A dwelling is a human,” Maddie said, clapping her hands. “Remember that dress you tried on where you suffocated?”

I nodded.

“Well
, she was chosen as the first vessel for Artemis, but she was murdered before the transition occurred,” Maddie finished. “Artemis hasn’t found a suitable place since.”

“Murdered by who?” I asked.

“Someone who was onto it— the transition— I guess. We don’t really know. But the fairies were devastated. They had thought your relative was their savior to protect them and the natural world from destruction. Little did they know it was only going to get worse—”

“Before it got better,”
Sarah interrupted.

“So what does this have to do with me?” I asked, my heart rate was racing.

“Well, you’re more than your relative ever could have been, and from what we can tell, you have been chosen,” Maddie said.

My world began spinning as I attempted to swallow what she was telling me. I looked at my aunt and my mom who both had tears streaming down their faces.

“How do you know your guess is true?” I asked, glancing at Maddie.

“
Sarah’s studies are the natural worlds. She has dedicated her entire life to understanding these possibilities of spiritual and physical realms. The fairies have employed her for over ten decades.”

My head whipped back over to
Sarah’s young face. “There’s no way she’s a hundred.”

“She’s a hundred and twenty, to be exact,” Maddie said. “The fairie
s should never be discounted.”

“So it is possible. They can…”my voice trailed off.

“We have good reason to believe that Artemis has chosen you as her next vessel,” Sarah began.

“But I don’t want to be a vessel. I want to be me, Triss, who gets
to live out the next couple years in relative peace before the curse takes over,” I argued. “Enough of this.”

“
Being a vessel doesn’t change who you are at all. You will still be Triss, but you will provide the connection between the physical world and the spiritual world. You will still have the abilities of the
Divinus
.”

“And I still hold the fate of the
Divinus
,” I said, looking at Maddie and then at my mom. “There would be no point in transitioning into me when…”

Maddie and
Sarah sighed. I caught Ellsy smiling as we connected our gaze.

“She’s as stubborn as they come. Once she makes up her mind, I don’t think there’s any changing it. I know my son has tried his hardest to get her to choose another path,” Ellsy spoke.

“Your concern right now is ending the main feud between the Demoniker and the Praedivinus Orders so they leave the fairies alone, correct?” Maddie asked.

I nodded.

“And after that is completed, you plan on ignoring all of the other problems that Mother Earth is fighting when you have the chance to give Mother Nature one more chance to survive.” Maddie paused and looked over at Trevor. “Because you’re worried you’ll be too lonely after everyone’s gone. Is that correct?”

“Partially,” I acknowledged.

“What if everyone you loved died tomorrow?” she asked. “You’d have to go on.”

“Is that a threat?” I asked, anger edging my voice. My pulse quickened.

“Not at all. But I want you to understand that the choice you’re forcing on your family is one of the most selfish acts. Not to mention what you’re doing to the world as a whole by turning your back,” Maddie finished.

“You and your family will die during this battle you’re staging if you don’t make the right choices. The guardians have told me,”
Sarah said quietly. “We can’t tell you what those choices are, only you will be charged with making the decisions. But all we can hope is that you’re open to the possibilities that will be laid out in front of you. If you go into it with this stubbornness that everyone around you loves, there will be no one left around you to love.”