I was now restrained to my bed indefinitely. I felt pressure on my body every now and then, but other than that, I just felt lonely. I began to hear flashes of voices like there was someone speaking in the room, but no one was there. I was afraid of getting up and afraid of what was happening to me. I didn’t know what was happening to me and cried much more than I would have liked. I also started feeling eyes watching me, especially in the chairs around the bed. I noticed that the pressure on me would be greater when I tried to move and greatest when I tried to get up. No matter what, I was kept in bed for so long, so much longer than I wanted.

I called out for my father, my friends, and even the gods and goddesses quite often, but no one would respond to me. I thought I heard Yubik’s voice once when I felt pressure against my shoulder and ear, but I decided it was just me wishing for something that wasn’t there. When I tried to scream, I would feel my mouth being covered and my hair being stroked, like something putting pressure on me was trying to comfort me. I wanted there to be something, so I decided that I had a guardian angel watching over me.

One day, I decided to sit up in bed. No pressure yet, so I tried to push my boundaries a bit more. I looked around, then slid one leg over to dangle off the bed. Still no pressure. I slid my other to join my dangling leg and tried to stand, then felt pressure on my shoulders. I looked directly forward, trying to see something that may have been hidden. I saw nothing, though, which was what I expected. I leaned my forehead forward and I felt a light pressure against it. I felt as if something was trying to enter my mind, so I rejected it and pulled my head away. The pressure then pushed me back to the bed in a sitting position. Maybe my guardian angel wanted to talk to me, but I still wasn’t sure if it was really trying to look over me for protection.

I tried a leap of faith and opened my arms, looking out into the air in front of me. I waited and felt nothing for a few moments, then felt my eyes beginning to water. After, I felt a large amount of pressure around my torso and parts of my back, like someone was hugging me. I tried to hug back, but felt nothing in front of me. It was enough, though, because I actually felt like there was something somewhat human with me here.

Later on, I was able to push my boundaries and get my guardian angel to let me sit at my desk. Everything I picked up was made of Void stone, the black marble-like substance. I tried to experiment with my surroundings when I found a mirror-shaped item. I put my fingers on the side of it and began to press against the flat side, then I felt pressure on my wrists and the item was taken from my hands. I guess I wasn’t allowed to mess with things.

I picked up a long, thin item that was like a pencil. I tried to write on the desk with it, but it obviously wasn’t writing.

-

“What is she doing?” Elyse said, watching Emily jab a tube of makeup against her desk.

“I’m sure she thinks she is doing something great with it,” Yhannason said as she plucked it from Emily’s hands.

-

My guardian angel took the pencil item from me. I wasn’t doing anything productive either way, so I guess it was warranted. I got up and looked around, not seeing anyone in the room. I lifted a hand up in the direction the item went, then leaned forward. I felt nothing, which I expected.

Elyse watched as Yhannason backed away from Emily, who looked like she was trying to inappropriately grab the Goddess. “She doesn’t know, does she?”

Yhannason checked for anyone in the room and saw it was just her and Elyse, then felt Emily’s hand press against her. Her cheeks became flushed with red.

-  

A large amount of pressure flung my head to the side and I felt pain on my cheek. After, I was guided by the guardian angel back to my bed. I didn’t know what I did, I felt nothing in front of me. My eyes started to water again as I sat against my pillows in bed.

-

“Goddess, you just struck her!” Elyse yelled, springing from her seat.

“She… Right, I know.” Yhannason replied as she helped put Emily back in bed.

“Aww, she’s going to cry again.”

“It was warranted if she knew what she was doing.”

-

I decided to stay in bed this time. My guardian angel floated a black marble slab to me. I could turn parts of it like a book, but it was just black and rough, so I tossed it to the side. Then, I got an idea. I looked around, then said, “I can’t see you. Who are you?” I didn’t get a response. “I want to know who you are. Why did you hit me? What did I do wrong?”

-

“She’s trying to talk to us!” Elyse exclaimed. “I knew she didn’t know what she was doing!”

“Quiet,” Yhannason hushed her, then went to Emily, who kept asking who the people around her were. She was looking all around, clearly not seeing anyone in particular. “Now, how do I talk to you?” She took hold of Emily’s right arm and said, “Can you hear me?”

Emily looked down at the touch, then looked back up. “I feel you touching me. Who are you?”

“She can’t hear us,” Elyse pointed out.

Yhannason said, more to Elyse than to Emily, “One tap for no, two taps for yes.” She started poking her arm in different places, her wrist once and closer to her elbow twice.

“I don’t know who you are. I don’t… what are you doing to me?”

“Hm,” Yhannason pondered. “How do we get her to realize we want her to ask yes-or-no questions?”

“Uhm… Uhhh…”

“Are you an angel?” Emily suddenly asked.

Yhannason smiled, “Maybe she’ll figure it out on her own.” She then tapped against Emily’s wrist once.

“I… Are- are you a demon?”

Another single tap on the wrist.

“Was that a-an answer?”

Yes! Yhannason thought. She tapped twice lower on Emily’s forearm. We’re getting somewhere!

-

I was learning how to communicate with my guardian angel- Er, not angel, my guardian. Just guardian. I began to feel odd bits of pressure on my arm out of the blue and I think it’s how my guardian is going to answer me. The conversations were completely one-sided and I had no way of getting real questions from it, but I could get answers.

“Am I alive?” Two taps. “Can you tell me who you are?” One tap. “Am I where I think I am?” Two hesitant taps. “Do I know you?” Two excited taps. “Are you a god?” One tap. “Are you one of my friends?” Nothing for a moment, but then a sliding pressure against the middle of my arm. That’s odd. “Was that a ‘maybe’?” Two taps. Kay then. “You aren’t Lucelle, then?” Two taps. “You are Lucelle?” One tap. Whoops, miscommunication. “Are you me, but in a different reality?” One tap, then a light tap against my cheek. I guess that was a stupid question. “Do you know me?” Two taps. “Have I seen you recently?” Two taps. This was getting exhausting, but I kept going. “Are you Elysewhyr?” Nothing for a few moments, but then I felt an excited two taps on my left arm. Great, Elyse is here! I… I think.

I looked to the left. “You are Elyse?” Two taps again. “Can you prove it?”

-

“How do we prove that to her?” Elyse asked Yhannason.

“Well, is there anything you two have shared that only you two would know?”

Elyse thought about it for a few moments, then flicked the end of Emily’s nose. She flinched and put her hand to it, clearly not expecting that.

“Mortal, what was that for?”

“When alone, Lady Everlock likes to mess with me. She likes to use her magic to do that to me when I least expect it.”

Emily then spoke up. “Alright, I believe you.” She rubbed the end of her nose and then looked at Yhannason. “Now, you. Are you… Yubik? Judican? Elyse’s mother or father? Any of my workers?” Yhannason just tapped once on her wrist, denying all of them. “Do… you live here?” One tap. “Do you live in the living world?” One tap. “What about Ascentia?” Yhannason tapped twice, keeping her calm. “You are not a god or an angel, though. You aren’t Yubik or Judican and you know me, so you can’t be a prince or princess. You are a goddess?” Two taps. Emily’s face became pale. “Yhanna?” Two taps, finishing that guessing game.

-

After I figured out who they were, I asked one more question for the time being. I looked to the left. “Were you the one who struck me?” One tap. I looked to the right, then felt two taps before I even asked the question. Yhannason hit me. A goddess from Ascentia hit me! What could I have done to deserve- Uh oh.

The next day, I got up from bed. I felt pressure on my shoulder. “I want to go to my throne,” I said to my guardian, who could have been Elyse, Yhannason, or someone completely different. “You will let me go and you will make sure I do not run into anyone.” The pressure moved lightly to the top of my back and I made my way out the door. I walked down the empty, ruined halls until I finally got to the throne room. “It’s completely empty,” I said, now feeling like I actually had someone to talk to. “The ground is crumbled and the skies have turned red.” The pressure became heavy and shifted like the someone was comforting me. I continued on to go sit on my unholy throne of Void rock.

“Is everyone alright?” I asked to nothing. Two taps. “Good. Hold my hand.” The pressure moved to my hand, which was resting on the throne’s armrest. “I want a book to read, but everything is made out of the damned black Void rock. How long until my perception is fixed?” I asked up to my right. I got no response and the pressure didn’t shift, so I rephrased my question. “Is anyone working on figuring out how to fix my perception?” Two taps, which gave me a certain level of assurance.

“I want to find them again. I want to challenge them to a duel and beat them this time. I can do it, I know it. I know their weaknesses, I think. I have friends in places others can’t- wait… where are my guards? Xinex, Xin’ier?” No answer.

I stood up and looked to where the pressure was coming from. “Take me to them and have them touch me. I know they fought it when I fell under. Take me to them!” The pressure left my hand, then I felt a single tap on my wrist. “No,” I shook my head. Turning to the left, I ran to the doorway, using my mana to shove anything in front of me out of the way until I was through the door. I got out and looked around, then saw what I feared I would see. Twin soldiers of Flame and Frost standing guard at the doorway, each of them missing good portions of their bodies. Soon enough, I felt my shoulder grabbed. I resisted and pushed the someone away.

“Why are they here?! They shouldn’t be, are they still alive?! Answer me.” Single tap. I quieted my voice, holding back tears. “They died fighting for my safety? All for me?” Two taps. My most loyal soldiers, my allies, killed because of my carelessness. When will this burden not feel so heavy on my shoulders?

“Take me to my room.” The someone pulled my wrist and took me all the way back up to my room, but I saw something odd on the way. In passing, I could have sworn I saw someone down a far hall, just for a moment before they turned the corner. It was only that moment I had, though, before I was pulled away again. When back in bed, I gave up on trying to figure things out for the time being. Right now, I just wanted companionship, but I wasn’t getting that. “Tell me I’m loved.”

-

“What did she just say?”

“You heard her.”

-

I felt a tap, then a dragging line of pressure on my arm. Another dragging line that turned in an L-shape. O, V, E. The pressure continued to spell out “I love you.”

“I want to rest on someone.”

-

“Did you hear that?”

“I’ll do it, she’s my best friend.”

-

I felt someone move a hand across my back, left to right, and then pull me to the left. I fell right down onto the pillow and sheets, but assumed I was lying on someone. Tears came to my eyes. I felt everything someone did to me, but nothing I did to anyone else. “I can’t feel myself against you,” I sniffled. This was the most crying I’d done in way too long. I probably looked like a mess to everyone else.