Bring on the updates, Shewolf! I'm with you, I hate playing so far ahead of the story.
Poor Chronos looked so sad when he aged up, like he's starting to feel the weight of the Dynasty on his shoulders already. And I love the stray ghost cat. Will you name him? I love that he's sleeping with Jess.
Well, I hope you guys enjoy this update ^^. And yeah, poor Chronos. I probably will name him, though haven't seen him come out lately.
Ok, guys. Enjoy this chapter. Hope everyone likes it ^^
Chapter 17: Mother Nature
We had another visit from Ryan tonight. I think he feels it in the air. He came in and sat down to watch TV. Hope was ecstatic; she sat down next to him and joined her father’s ghost. As they watched, they caught up on all that was happening in the house. “Dad, Gaea’s done it. It’s all comin’ together,” she murmured to him.
Jess was ecstatic to see her husband. She had missed him the last couple times he’d made an appearance. She didn’t this time. Their reunion was beautiful to watch and very heart warming. Jess told him that they’d be reunited soon.
I have become an elder. I was just walking out of Varg’s tavern after hanging out with a couple friends when it happened. While I don’t mind being gray, I much prefer my normal hair color. So I did die my hair back, though I left some gray in it. I think it suits me.
Chronos and Hope still spend a good majority of their downtime painting. Hope has also taken up sculpting as well. I’m fairly sure that Nick encouraged her. He knows there will need to be someone to take over for him, when it is… that time.
Nick bought the recipe for Ambrosia and has been reading up on it. I only need my portrait, and my sculpture finished, then it will be time for me to descend the stairs to the basement… I almost cannot fathom that I’ve done it, that this is the first step in restoring the balance. Nick is in the kitchen, preparing the ambrosia now. I find myself… a little numb I think. It almost seems like a dream.
Nick calls me over to sculpt me. My portrait is already downstairs. Can it be?
Nick hasn’t let me downstairs yet. But he did snap a couple pictures of my finished museum room. I will see it soon enough, he tells me.
Before I descend into the basement, Nick and I have a small celebration. I cling to him a little, things finally starting to settle in, to make me realize that this is reality. That I’ve done it. After tonight… the responsibility passes onto my son. This will most likely be my last entry for quite a while.
I hesitate to leave Nick. I wanted him to come with me, but he just smiled at me in that crooked way he had. It was the first time I had seen even a hint of sadness there… “No, my love,” he murmured. “This is for you alone to do.” He had to swallow before he hugged me tightly and then released me. “Go, Gaea. Go, my Goddess. Fulfill your destiny.” With tears blurring my vision, I walked to the small shed in the back and opened the door. It had always been locked to me before, but now, the door opened and I stepped inside. I could see the way the stairs disappeared into the darkness. I had to hold my breath. When I reached for the railing, my hands were shaking. But I descended the stairs.
I slowed down when I went past the wall Nick and the others had set up. There he was… his portrait on the wall along with a few photos he and I had taken together. Tears pricked my eyes. At least I would have this in the time to come.
When I entered my own little room, I paused again, looking at the images of me, images of me made by loving, selfless hands. Tears blurred my eyes as I programed the replicator and grabbed the plate.
I went to the long table that Nick had had placed down here. A table with eight places. Taking a deep breath, the heady aroma of the Ambrosia flowing into my nostrils, I sat down. My fork hovered over it for a moment, then it delved in. The taste… I still don’t know if I can describe it. It is a combination of the best thing I have ever eaten… and the worst thing. It mixes in your mouth. But then the taste is overshadowed. It felt like my life passed before my eyes. Meeting Nick for the first time, the first time we kissed… holding my son in my arms, watching him and Hope grow… watching Ryan and Jess, their love as strong as Nick and mine.
Energy seemed to swirl around me, infuse my body. Old I may have been, but now, I felt young again, like the Earth itself was giving me its power. Then a voice sounded in my head, a voice that I recognized, “You are the first, Gaea. The first link in the chain. You have restored some of what was lost. Your descendants will have to do the rest now. I look forward to seeing you again, Gaea. When next we meet.” Then the voice was gone, the bright iridescent lights were gone. And I was alone.
I am Gaea. I am Mother Nature and I am Immortal.
*****
