Mnou's soul was thrown into chaos of her body like into a stormy sea. She felt the material world pressing in on her from all sides, but before she could recover, something tore control of her body away from her. It was like being blown off a cliff by a hurricane and once again falling through emptiness. She didn't even realize it, but in an instant, she had once again been sucked into the physical world. This time, she was prepared and resisted the opposing force. She fought with all her might to maintain control over her body. Her head felt like it was full of stones; she sensed she was not alone. A foreign aura spread through her consciousness. She gripped the magical staff she was still holding and felt her mother's soul seeping into her awareness. That gave her strength. She stretched her consciousness to the limit and desperately tugged for control. The imaginary rope kept slipping through her hands as if greased, but the more strongly she felt her mother's presence, the more she gained the upper hand. Finally, she overpowered it. With one last burst of energy, she yanked hard, and the intruder soul plummeted into the abyss of nothingness. A desperate screech flashed through the witch's mind like a sudden bolt of lightning. Then came peace.
She finally began to perceive the world around her again. It was overwhelming after the one-dimensionality of the astral plane. She heard every creak of the wood and every whoosh of the wind. It thundered in her ears like a hurricane. She realized she was lying in bed. The blanket covering her felt like it was filled with stones. She could feel every touch on her body. Her back was numb from lying down too long. Her head was spinning. Someone was holding her hand—a small one, trembling nervously.
"Master?" came a desperate voice from above her.
It took Mnou a moment before she dared open her eyes, as she was overwhelmed with all the other sensations even without her sight. Eventually, she cautiously opened them. She had to force herself not to shut them again immediately. The light made her head pound and her eyes ache, even though she realized the room was still quite dim. She took a deep breath, and her lungs painfully stretched. She started coughing, which made the agony even worse.
"M... Master!" cried a still-blurry figure beside the bed. But the witch's vision began to sharpen. It was Esme.
Esme supported her with care. Several expressions passed across her exhausted face—first disbelief, then realization, and finally relief and joy. Tears started streaming from her tired eyes.
"Master!" the girl cried and threw herself at her, hugging her tightly over the pile of blankets. The witch's perception was still painfully sharp, so she wanted to ask the apprentice to stop. But before she could, Esme did it on her own. She pulled back as if burned. Tears still streamed from her eyes, but the joyful gleam suddenly turned into anger.
"Wh... why did you leave me like that?! I was so... so scared! I was afraid I'd be alone again. You lied to me! You lied!"
Mnou was completely exhausted and confused. What the hell was she going on about? I just woke up and she's already yelling at me?
"Could you quiet down a bit? You're giving me a headache. I have no idea why you're making such a fuss," she snapped at her. She wasn't exactly in the best mood after everything that had just happened.
"Why I'm making a fuss? Why?! How can you even say that?! You have no idea how I felt when I came home and found you curled up on the floor. You were ice cold—like dead! If I hadn't checked multiple times, I wouldn't even have found a pulse. You were barely breathing!"
"Okay, okay," Mnou interrupted, irritated and grumbling an apology. "Sorry. It was kind of... an accident. Otherwise, I'd have told you in advance. But I still don't understand why you're making such a scene over a few hours."
"A few hours?!" the girl cried out, outraged.
"Yes, I was gone for just a few hours!"
"You were out for a week! A whole seven days!"
Mnou stared at her in disbelief, trying to process what she had just heard. A week? She shook her head, refusing to believe it, but she knew it must be true. She remembered her past astral journeys. Yes, time really did pass differently there, but the difference had never been that big before!
"I had to take care of you like a baby all that time! I fed you, bathed you, did everything! I didn't know what was wrong with you or if you'd ever wake up!"
That was too much for Mnou. She shouted without even realizing it: "Okay, I get it, it must have been hard, but I have bigger problems than arguing with a crying girl! Someone tried to steal my body, for your information! I need to sort this out, so could you please just shut up for now!"
"No, I won't! You're a liar. You promised me you'd never leave me, but I've never felt so alone as I did those seven days! You lied!"
"So what?! When are you finally going to grow up and realize life isn't that simple?! Everyone lies sometimes! You're old enough to understand that, and if not, then wake up fast, girl, or you'll never get anywhere in life!"
Esme looked at her with a mixture of surprise, sadness, disappointment, and contempt. Only now did Mnou notice how miserable she looked. Her eyes were red from crying. Usually bright blue, they now seemed pale and dry, as if all their colour had drained with her tears. Dark circles loomed under them. She was pale, and her hair was greasy and stringy. Her normally neat braid over her right shoulder was nowhere to be seen.
"I… I should have left you and run to Ruth! She'd have taken better care of me than you!" the girl sobbed and stumbled out of the room, barely able to see through her tears. She still managed to grab her staff and hat. The oak door slammed behind her, and silence fell over the dim cottage—like in a tomb. Only the wind howled mournfully through the chimney.
Mnou felt frustrated, torn, sad… and alone. These emotions boiled inside her day and night. It had been three days since the argument with Esme. The girl still hadn't returned. Without her constant chatter, the cottage felt gloomy and deserted.
She tried to keep herself busy. She cleaned the entire house, milked the sheep, baked a raspberry pie—and when she tried to prepare a calendula tincture, but she spilled all of it. In a burst of anger, she smashed the vial against the freshly scrubbed wooden floor, where large and small shards scattered in every direction. The herbal mix spread among them.
Without a word, she grabbed her staff and stormed outside, the door slamming behind her. She nearly slipped on the damp steps.
The landscape was speckled with gentle raindrops that pierced through the thick fog creeping along the hillsides. From within that milky whiteness came the occasional chime of bells tied around the necks of the sheep.
I wish I could go back to the astral realm, to my mother. Why did I even return here? So, some little girl could scold me and run away? For this?She told me herself she doesn't need me—so why should I stay?
Such thoughts clouded her mind and circled her like a flock of hungry vultures. She was so preoccupied she didn't watch the path ahead. One wrong step—and before she knew it, she was tumbling down the wet hillside. Her back was soaked and covered in mud, but she didn't even care. She lay there, staring at the sluggish grey clouds drifting overhead.
I should go after her. I know I should! But… but I can't face her like this. I was once a bad daughter to my mother, and now I've been a bad mentor to Esme. She hates me, and I don't blame her. Not one bit. She'll be better off with Ruth, away from my interference. I should've never taken her as an apprentice. Never. Being alone is better. That way, I can't hurt anyone else.
"Mnou, why such gloomy thoughts?" came a sudden elderly voice from the fog.
The witch flinched, startled, and tried to stand up quickly. But she slipped again and hit her chin hard on a rock.
"Careful, I didn't mean to frighten you. I can't let you hurt your body."
"Who's there?" Mnou finally managed to stand on the slick grass. The voice sounded strangely familiar, but a hollow unease twisted in her stomach. Something about it was wrong. In the misty haze loomed a dark silhouette. She couldn't make out the details, but the figure was hunched and small. Who the hell is that? Some oddball shepherd?
"I came to talk, witch. I've wanted to for a long time, but never had a chance. I hope you don't mind my new appearance."
Pebbles on the path above her rattled with the shuffling steps of aged feet. The fog finally thinned, revealing the stranger.
Mnou forgot to breathe for a second. She froze, staring in shock at the figure stepping into view.
"Coris?" she finally gasped in disbelief.
"Oh yes, yes. You're looking at the human vessel you knew as Coris. But I must disappoint you—the true essence of your friend no longer exists in this world." The voice still came from Coris's aged vocal cords, but it was different. It had an unnatural depth. It sounded ancient—far older than an eighty-year-old man.
"What did you do to him?!" Mnou screamed, horrified, already preparing to bind the stranger to the earth. But she hesitated. Despite everything it said, she still didn't want to harm Coris's body.
"Me? I did nothing. You know how frail he was. He died in his sleep. I merely took the opportunity to use his vessel to speak with you."
"I don't care what you want or what you have to say! Get out of Coris's body! Now!" the witch shouted; eyes wild with fury.
"Believe me, I would love to. If I could, I'd leave this old, useless body immediately…"
"Stop treating human bodies like toys you can throw away when you're done with them!" she snapped.
"Oh, but that's exactly what they are. Vessels for the soul. It's the soul that makes a person. The soul is everything. A perfect being like a soul is only constrained by a physical shell. You of all people should know that. Unfortunately, a soul without a body cannot function in this realm. I acknowledge its utility. And that brings me to why I came."
Coris's face curled into a strange smile, and something flickered in his nearly lifeless eyes. Mnou felt as if she was falling into them. Finally, the old man spoke again.
"I want your body, witch."
"Whoever—or whatever—you are, you'll never get my body!"
"I expected as much, but perhaps you'll change your mind once you know who I really am. "I'm a goddess."
Mnou stared at the goddess wearing Coris's body, dumbfounded. She wanted to respond—but had no idea how.
"Yes, I am the goddess of this island. You're probably wondering why a goddess would need a body. Why stoop so low? Unfortunately, I am a forgotten goddess. I was once powerful—but that was long, long ago. Now I possess not a trace of my former might. I cannot even exist in this world without a vessel. All I can do is whisper into dreams—like the ones your friend heard. For ages I slept the dreamless sleep of gods. But now I've awakened, and I won't fade again. I need a body to once more shape the course of history. And yours… yours is strong."
"Me? Why me? I want nothing to do with you, self-proclaimed goddess!" Mnou tried to sound brave and defiant, but her knees trembled beneath her skirt like leaves in the wind. Even though it was just an old man standing before her, the foreign aura radiating from him terrified her.
"Every vessel I've entered has crumbled to dust. None could host my divine soul. But your body is different. It's been trained for years to work with souls. I know you could handle it."
"Even if I could, I never would!"
"Wouldn't you want to host the soul of a goddess? Don't worry—it wouldn't mean your end. We'd share your body. Or, in time, I could find you a new, more beautiful one."
The air whistled as it split, slicing through the rain. A thin red line spread across Coris's face. Mnou gripped her staff tighter, readying another attack.
"I'll say this once more—give it up! I will never agree to this! Now get out of that body!"
The man sighed. "And I had such hopes for you. Truly, I believed you would accept. It seemed like a good offer. But I suppose we see things differently. Fine then—if not willingly, then by force. I won't give up, witch. One day, your body will be mine."
Coris's eyes flashed one last time—and then faded forever. His body collapsed like a rag doll. Mnou couldn't even catch him in time. She rushed to his side.
The last spark of desperate hope in her extinguished when she checked his pulse. The body was cold and pale like January snow.
Despite all the wild revelations of the past few minutes, none of it seemed to matter—not compared to the fact that she would never again be able to speak to Coris.
Her tears mixed with the intensifying rain, and the mountains echoed her anguished cry.