Chapter 8
1427 Words
8Topper woke from the strangest dream she could ever remember having and found herself standing n***d in the lushest jungle she’d ever seen. Feeling as guilty as Lilith in the Garden of Eden, she looked down at her nudeness and then around at the flowering, blossoming trees.
At least she was warm finally, but how in the Fates had she gotten here from Alaska? And where was Stark? Was he even still alive?
Worry brought a frown to her face and a knot to her stomach.
Before she could dwell on the negative thoughts, a tall red-haired woman in a pale green gown stepped out of the trees. She smiled in welcome, but Topper could only frown in reply.
“Hello, Mildred,” the woman said in greeting.
Topper cringed and held up a hand. “Stop. Do not speak that vileness again. That’s not my name.”
The woman laughed. “It was the name your mother gave you when you were born. It was your great-grandmother’s name. It is the name by which you received your Goddess-given power.”
“Only one being is allowed to call me that hideous name… and it’s not you,” Topper said defiantly.
She waved a hand over her body to clothe herself, but nothing happened. She glared at the beautifully clothed woman who was still smiling at her.
“I’m glad you find this so funny, but I do not. Did you take my powers away?” Topper demanded.
The woman shook her head. “No. You’re dreaming… mostly. Your mate undressed you before he put you in bed. That’s the reason you’re not wearing clothes.”
So at least Stark lived. “This is wrong on so many levels I can’t list them all. I’m never n***d in my dreams,” Topper said.
The woman bit her lip as she fought not to laugh again.
“Well, I’m not n***d in this kind of dream,” Topper exclaimed. “And I’d appreciate you not laughing at me. I’m on my honeymoon and today someone tried to kill my mate. I’m a little bit stressed here.”
Her tormentor giggled as she smiled wider. “I can see why the Fates care for you so much. You’re quite entertaining. I also hear you’re a very good cook. Sometimes I really miss eating. It was among my favorites of Earthly pleasures.”
Topper fisted hands on her bare, ample hips. “Okay. I’ll bite. What do you want from me? Why am I here?”
“I want nothing,” the woman declared with yet another laugh. “I just needed to talk to you—alone. Your mate is very protective and I’ve had a hard time catching you without him nearby. I can’t really interact with him too much.”
“Fine. Fine. We all have our rules. Now… who or what… are you?”
The woman ducked her head. “I died not long ago and now I serve Gaia. That’s all that you really need to know about me. That past was good, but now it’s gone. I prefer to focus on the present and my tasks.”
Topper’s hand fell to her sides. “I see. I’m sorry then if I was rude. Are you one of Gaia’s priestesses?”
The woman shook her head. “Not priestess… more like her messenger. Are you willing to hear my words?”
Topper nodded, and then sighed. “It would be a lot easier to listen if I had some clothes on.”
The woman bowed her head and lifted a hand. Topper felt cool, sensuous fabric slide against her skin and looked down to see a purple gossamer gown now covered her. It was probably the most beautiful piece of clothing she’d ever seen in her life.
“Wait… it needs adornment,” the woman declared.
She walked closer and touched the top of her head. Even without a mirror, Topper knew the woman had changed her hair color to match the dress.
“Better?” Gaia’s messenger asked.
Topper nodded again. Two chair-shaped boulders suddenly appeared. She numbly walked to one and sat, trying to remember the last time she was so overwhelmed. It was probably when the Fates had taken her powers. She’d hoped never to feel that defenseless again.
Gaia’s messenger sat in the other boulder chair and wiggled until she got comfortable. “Now we can talk comfortably.”
Topper didn’t answer, just waited for her to speak again.
“Your mate has given you an unusual gift. The light he shared with you is the light of creation from his planet. His goddess gifted it to him. Now he’s given some to you. This was not intentional, but the best things almost never are.”
“Creation light?” Topper repeated. “What does that mean?”
“Creation energy is both orderly and chaotic at the same time. It brings unpredictable magic into the world, yet also replenishes passion and motivation and… it always, always brings great change.”
“Is that why I exploded snow? I was trying to freeze the person attacking my mate,” Topper said.
Gaia’s messenger looked pensive. “Yes. At the moment that energy is inside you looking for a place in your body to manifest. It needs your permission to do what is in its nature to do.”
Topper frowned. “What’s that mean?”
“The light will either dissipate and move alongside your own powers to eventually enhance them… or it could become a child… or two. This is the choice you need to make.”
Topper sat back and shook her head. “What kind of choice is that? I’m too old to become a mother. That’s for younger women.”
“What is your true age? Do you even know?”
Topper sighed. “I only know because my sisters and I track the passing of time,” she said.
“Yes, but what do human years mean to a witch? Some part of you has always been and will always be. You will never stop being.”
Topper sighed. “Okay. I admit that I chose the age others see when they see me. I’ve chosen to be that same age for a good while now. My sisters have gone along with me so we all look nearly the same. Apparently their children liked having older looking parents.”
“And you’ve chosen to be your current age because it served you in your leadership role.”
“If you know all my reasons already, why are you making me state them?” Topper asked.
“Because I think you’ve succumbed to human influence too much. You are Gaia’s witch and the Fates watch over your life—as was the woman whose name you don’t like sharing. Your mother chose to bring you into the world when she was also beyond normal years to do so. She loved you so much that she repeated the experience to have your sisters and to make sure she’d contributed all she could to the power continuum of your family. She lived to see all her daughters well into witch adulthood, did she not?”
Topper nodded. “Yes. And I still miss her.”
“Because you have neglected to see that your mother is still with you. Her energy clings to your family. Each new addition brings a little more of her back into the world. Your niece Lacey… she received a healthy portion.”
“Yes. Lacey is a lot like her and has some of her gifts. Are you saying my mother wants to be reborn through my children too?” Topper asked.
Gaia’s messenger smiled. “Any child of yours would certainly bring a large part of her back to the Earth. It would also bring the power from another world here as well. You and Lacey have unique opportunities.”
“But…”
“Not all women are gifted with children. I did not have any in my physical life. My energy is all here now with Gaia because it has nowhere else to be. Yours will face that same fate and the line of Gaia’s witches would end.”
“But…”
Topper thought of what raising a child meant. All the work. The struggles. The training. Goddess, Lacey said she and Frost didn’t sleep a whole night for months after their baby came.
If she had a child, there could be no more dangerous safaris or crazy adventures until the child reached a proper age of wielding magic. She’d have to content herself with family vacations. What were those even like?
Topper stared off into space as a million things occurred to her. When she finally escaped her thoughts, Gaia’s messenger was still smiling at her.
“How long do I have to decide?” Topper asked.
“I’m not sure. The power within you is restless. It won’t settle down until you make a decision.”
Topper put a hand on her stomach. “I…” A tiny spark lit there, and then fluttered.
Gaia’s messenger smiled as she stood. “I think you’ve made the right choice. Gaia will be very pleased.”
“But…”
The messenger sighed and Topper watched raw grief bloom on the woman’s face.
“Since I’ve delivered Gaia’s message to you, will you deliver one for me?”
“Uh… I guess so,” Topper said, suddenly more wary than ever.
“Remind him that his destiny did not die with me. My death was just a new beginning for him.”
Then the jungle was gone, the messenger was gone, and Topper woke up groaning.
Baby? She couldn’t be having a baby. Where had that come from?
And who in the world was she supposed to deliver such a strange message to?
Topper sat up quickly, breathing hard. It had been a dream. Wow… what a strange dream that was.
Running a restless hand through her hair, she glanced down at her body and saw she was wearing a purple gossamer dress.
- Writer
