Page 88 of Gift from the Nexus

What is happening right now?

“Old? Twenty-six has never looked this good, thank you very much,” she sasses, putting her hand on her hip and running the other down her bloodied and beaten body. They both chuckle, causing my heart to pound, and the sounds are all I hear ringing in my ears.

The two of them continue to talk, but I don’t catch any of it because the noise has faded to nothing. I try everything I can think of to force my hearing to return, but nothing works and before I can play catch up, the scene in front of me begins to blur.

Time becomes meaningless, and far faster than my mind can count or comprehend, years pass us by. Then it stops.

I’m still coexisting with CC—who’s in so much trouble with me when I get out of their mind—but we’re no longer standing in the cave with my mom. We’re lurking behind some trees, like true stalkers, watching her. She’s surrounded protectivelyby three men, and her appearance is shrouded, like she’s purposely being obscured from everyone as they walk through what appears to be a small market. I don’t have to see her face or be told it’s her. I just know. I don’t know if it’s CC’s sense to her or my own, but it’s clear as day.

She peeks out from under the cover of her head garment a couple of times, smiling and waving to another man and a young boy, who laughs and rolls his eyes playfully. It’s a cute, sweet moment, but it’s shattered to pieces as all hell breaks loose.

Transports open in every direction, and out pile Mastery members. Some are wearing the obvious black robes that give them away, while some are just loaded up with weapons and everyday clothes. Fighting breaks out amongst everyone as they start snatching people up and transporting them away faster than many can react. My heart, maybe CC’s as well, races as we wait with bated breath. We don’t step in despite the burning need to. We just watch.

“MOMMA.”

It all happens so fast. It’s like a blur of motion.

One second, two of my mom’s men are trying to pull her away. The next, she’s letting out a war cry like no other I’ve ever heard.

Jumping right into the middle of the fray, covering long gone, she’s blasting herself a path through the men and slicing the throat open of a man who was attempting to pull away the child she was waving to earlier. He’s nothing more than a lifeless corpse at her feet in milliseconds.

As one, her Nexus surrounds her and the boy, blocking their view from the Mastery, who are still fighting relentlessly in the street. Grabbing his hand, my mom pulls the boy behind her, heading straight for us.

Stepping out from behind the tree, my mom screeches to a halt, her hackles automatically up until she takes me, well, CC in, and she sighs a breath of relief. I feel CC’s eyes soften and a sad smile crosses their face.

“CC, you scared me. What are you doing here? We must go,” she says frantically, clutching the boy to her side.

“I’m so sorry, old friend. The time has come,” they say sadly.

Her silver eyes shatter and well with tears instantly. The hurt, the rage is visible as her whole body shakes. She doesn’t speak at all, only responds with a slight nod. Moments later, her men run up behind her, out of breath, bloodied, but they aren’t trying to attack CC, so they obviously know them.

“Iris, what’s going on? We need to get out of here. There’re more coming and they’ll be on us any minute,” one of them says.

“It’s time,” my mom chokes out, steeling her shoulders and turning around to them.

“No, not yet. We have time,” one of them says mournfully.

“We don’t, my love,” she breathes.

Making her way to each of them, she pours her heart out. Showering them with tear-drenched kisses and sweet whispers of promises of the beyond. And how this is not eternity, only a blimp in time.

Finally dropping down to her knees, she pulls the boy in close and kisses his forehead.

“Momma, what’s going on?” he asks, emotion clogging his throat.

“Do you remember in the story of the wolf, I told you how his mother had to go away for a long time so she could right the wrongs done?” she asks, wiping away his tears.

“Yes, ma’am. She helps save the realm,” he says confidently and she nods.

“Well, Momma has to go do the same thing now, baby.”

His eyes widen in both surprise and childlike pride as if he’s staring at a real-life superhero before the realization of what she said truly clicks.

“But…but you’ll be gone. Forever.” He cries.

“I’ll never leave you. Not truly, my boy. Every time you need to feel me, run free through the trees,” she murmurs, laying her forehead to his.

“Is…is the rest of the story true? Or you made it all up?”

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