Iridescence

Chapter Seventeen (Jenna)

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

JENNA

I overslept. I never oversleep, but I was having a heck of a dream, or maybe I should say nightmare.

I couldn't make much sense of it, but I was in a battle, leading a team of soldiers against the opponent, a giant snake. Everything seemed to be going well until something grabbed onto me and bit me.

I recognized the creature as a dremlin. It laughed at me, and I began getting dizzy as I lost a significant amount of blood. The dremlin drank my blood like it couldn't get enough of it, refusing to release my arm.

"Vanessa!" I screamed, wondering if she could hear me. Nothing happened. I was starting to panic when I remembered that while Vanessa had to wake up eventually, Morpheus was always aware of the dream realm.

"Morpheus! Help me!" I shouted.

Seconds later, Morpheus manifested out of thin air. His eyes narrowed in anger at the sight of the dremlin. He grabbed it around the neck and flung it away from me with impressive force. It vanished into the darkness with an indignant squeak of protest.

"You are injured," Morpheus said.

"It hurts," I admitted. "I'm sure I'll be fine, though. Thanks for coming. Can I please wake up now?"

"Come with me, Jenna. Your wound needs tending."

I wanted to protest that it was only a dream and I'd be fine as soon as I woke up, but Morpheus didn't give me the chance. Instead, we were instantly transported somewhere else. He silently began treating my injury.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"The dremlin's venom is flowing through your veins. I must cleanse the wound," he replied. He was carefully applying something to my injured arm. It stung, but then the injury started feeling better. "Eat this," he said, handing me something.

"A cupcake?" I asked in confusion.

"It is a carefully crafted food meant to increase your strength, stamina, and health. It will revitalize you and finish cleansing the venom from your veins."

"I'm in training," I protested. "I can't just eat random sweets."

"It is not a cupcake!" He snapped.

"Are you sure? Because it looks like a cupcake."

"Jenna, eat this immediately or you will die. Is that clear enough?"

I stared at him. I wasn't sure how a magical cupcake was supposed to save my life, but who was I to argue with a deity? I popped the not-a-cupcake into my mouth. "It tastes like a cupcake, too," I mumbled.

Suddenly, I felt much stronger. Not only did I no longer feel like I'd been poisoned, but I felt better than I had in my entire life. "Did you just drug me?" I demanded.

"It is made of ambrosia," he replied. "It is not a drug, Jenna. It is the food of the Gods."

"I'm not a God," I protested.

"Not now, perhaps," he replied, "but your survival proves to me that you once were."

"Are you saying that cupcake could have killed me?"

"It is not a... Oh, forget it! Yes, Jenna, if you eat the food of the Gods and you have no deity energy within you, it is typically fatal. However, I knew you would survive."