Fallen Souls

Chapter 26: In the light [END]

Mikhaila felt like she was floating in the air. She felt so light and peaceful. Am I dead? She thought. She slowly opened her eyes and was blinded by the brightness of her surroundings.

"Where am I?" she asked aloud.

She started feeling her body and found out that she wasn't in pain anymore. She looked down and noticed that she was wearing a long flowy white dress that slightly trailed the ground. But as her eyes adjusted to her surroundings, she discovered that there wasn't any ground to begin with—she was floating in midair!

Panic started to spread in her chest just when someone slowly materialized in front of her.

It was a beautiful lady—no, beautiful was an understatement. Mikhaila couldn't find words enough to describe her enchanting beauty. She looked like a goddess in every part of her body. The lady's brown hair was piled up on her head with just a few strands flowing down the sides of her face. Her eyes were a striking blue. After staring at her face for a short while, Mikhaila started feeling that she had seen this lady before.

"...who are you?" she asked.

The lady gently smiled. "Don't you remember who I am? I have always watched over you and your brother..."

"L-Lady Euphiria?" she stuttered.

She smiled again and floated towards her. "You finally remembered..."

She gently embraced me. Her warmth enveloped her instantly and she gave her a sense of comfort.

"My dear, you have endured a lot..." she said while caressing her hair. Mikhaila suddenly remembered her mother who would do the exact same thing before when she was younger whenever she was troubled. 'I am so proud of you and your brother."

Tears started forming in her eyes as she remembered everything that had happened: the separation from Mikhail 18 years ago, the loss of the family who took care of her, the hardships of the journey...but the most painful thing of all was seeing her brother being stabbed in front of her very eyes.

"I'm sorry that the two of you have to endure all of this...if there was another choice, you wouldn't suffer as much."

"We don't blame you for anything, my lady. We will not be the kind of person that we are now if that didn't happen."

"Mikhaila..." the goddess stared deep in her eyes that see to pierce her soul then released her from her arms. "...you have changed..."

"In a good way or a bad way?"

The great lady chuckled. "In a good way..."

That made her glad but then she finally wanted to ask one thing. "Am I dead?" she asked the goddess.

"Don't worry...you are still alive but your body is still recovering from the ordeal that you faced.

Mikhaila breathed out a sigh of relief.

"But then, what am I doing here? Where's Mikhail?"

"Your brother is still resting as well...both from his wounds and the exhaustion of his powers." Lady Euphiria explained. "You, meanwhile isn't exactly here."

"What do you mean?"

"Your physical body is in the world that you live in, while your soul—" she pointed at me—"is currently in my realm." She spread her arms wide, indicating the place that they were currently in.