[Amanda]
"I sense her on you," I turned to see Cleona standing behind me, her silver eyes glassy as though she was lost in thought.
"What are you talking about?" I asked, facing her.
Her expression was almost sad. "Valilorna. I had hoped that she would be trapped indefinitely but alas, forever is too long for her."
"So she really is back," I said. "I thought maybe they were from the war and just stumbled upon Earth, but..."
"Nothing happens by chance, my dear," Cleona said. "The fates have seen all. They have foreseen this as well."
"Did they see how we beat her?"
"Unfortunately, fate is... difficult. It is merciful and merciless. It is unpredictable and can be seen at all times. There is no knowing which stream of fate will become reality."
I sighed. "Of course. Nothing makes sense with you."
She raised an eyebrow at my comment, but didn't say anything.
"So what am I supposed to do?" I asked. "Is Valilorna back for real, like in her own body and everything, or does she have a champion like us?"
Cleona's gaze shifted to the nothing surrounding us, away from me. "I cannot say."
I held back my burst of anger. She could never just give me a straight answer, and each time she did this, my patience ran thinner. Still, I bit back any comments and waited for her to speak again.
"Do not fear this new challenge, my dear," Cleona said finally, glancing over at me. "You are to be my strongest champion. Valilorna and her quest for chaos will not prevail."
Before I even saw her move, she was standing in front of me. She tucked a stray bit of hair behind my ear, before speaking again.
"You will triumph. Truth and justice always has, and it will continue to do so. You must follow in the footsteps of those who fought before you, avoid their mistakes, and then you will succeed."
I opened my mouth to ask how when I realized the goddess was no longer standing there. The silver aura that had been lighting up the nothingness was gone, and I shivered in the dark. It didn't last long though. A golden aura appeared in front of me, the figure within it so bright that I couldn't make out their features. But I knew exactly who it was. My hands covered in silver dust and I dropped into a defensive stance, silver lighting up the darkness along with the gold light.
The figure chuckled. "At ease, darling. I am not here to bring you any harm."
I narrowed my eyes. "And you'd like me to believe that? After your followers destroyed an entire military base?"
"Yet, they failed," she sighed. "As disappointed as I was, you can only imagine my excitement when I heard that it was the Champion of Cleona that had prevented their success." She laughed again, sending chills down my spine. "And here I thought my dear friend's pets were only good for breaking."
My jaw tightened, thoughts drifting to the book of past champions. The big, heavy book of champions who had died on the job. My powers glowed brighter in anger.
"Hm, yes, you feel powerless," she said, and though I couldn't see her face, I could tell she was smirking. "That is good. Only once you have no power can you truly feel powerful. It is natural for you to feel as such, darling. Truth and justice, they are nothing but concepts to be interpreted by each who wishes to use them. Chaos, now that is material. It can be seen, heard, and felt by all equally. That gives it power."
"It may be powerful," I said. "But it's also wrong."
"According to who? Your pathetic goddess?"
"According to the billions of beings across the universe who lost everything because of war."
She laughed. "Oh, you are a perspective one then. I like you."
"Leave me alone," I said, aiming a silver coated hand at her, my powers crackling in anticipation. "Whatever you're trying to do, I'll stop you."
"I am sure you will try, darling. And you will fail."
"Miss Beckett, you have a visitor."
I jolted awake, gasping as I snapped back to reality. My throat was parched and my hands shook as I reached for the water bottle on my nightstand, but I couldn't steady them enough to let me drink without spilling all over my bed.
Stop it. Breathe. Calm down.
So I did that, taking long, slow breaths to stop my racing heart. I scrubbed my hands over my face and sighed, feeling myself reset. Then I remembered what Blair had said that woke me up.
"Visitor?" I asked out loud, looking over at the clock on my wall that read 9:48am. I quickly dashed to the bathroom to wash up, calling to Blair, "Who is it?"
"Identified as Finn Ryen, miss."
"Oh, let him in! Tell him I'll be down there in two minutes."
"Yes, Miss Beckett."
I didn't bother changing out of my pj shorts and t-shirt, only slipping on some slippers before heading downstairs to find Finn in the kitchen, taking a bagel out of the toaster.
"Morning, sleepyhead," He said once he saw me, a bright smile on his face.
I stuck out my tongue at him. "You're the one who's up and about way too early. It is Saturday, remember? Summer break too. You should be asleep till noon."
"Duty calls," he shrugged, putting jam on the bagel and sliding the plate over to me.
"Thanks," I smiled, taking a bite out of the bagel. "What do you mean, duty calls?"
He leaned on the kitchen island across from me. "Fowler called in this morning. He's got approval for a meeting with our higher ups about this new Team Prime and wants me to head over to Washington with him."
I frowned. "For how long?"
"A couple of weeks, maybe a month."
I must have looked dismayed, because he walked around the island to stand next to me, placing a hand on my unbruised cheek. "It won't be that bad. I'll call you-"
"You had better," I said fiercely. "Everyday."
He smiled. "Yes ma'am."
"And don't go doing anything stupid."
"I should be telling you that. You're the one who's going to be dealing with those new Cybertronians until I get back. I'm just dealing with politicians and old generals."
I gave him a look. "Which one sounds worse?"
That earned me a grin. "Touche."
As I took another bite of my bagel, Finn ran a hand through my hair, handling onto a strand and asked, "When did you dye your hair?"
"Huh?" I looked up as he held the strand in front of my face. It was solid silver, almost metallic, but still felt like my hair. It wasn't very big, just an inch across, but it shone in the sunlight. "I never dyed my hair..."
Then I remembered my dream, when Cleona had tucked this exact strand behind my ears. I recounted the story for Finn, who played with the strand the entire time until I finished.
"I'm not sure what to take from all that, A," he admitted, reaching for the other half of my bagel and taking a bite out of it. "I wish I did, but-"
"I know," I placed a hand over his. "Don't stress over it. I'm going to search through the athenaeum like no tomorrow for more information on both goddesses all week. I'll also have to start training Miko and Jack, but I'll definitely have time for both."
A small smile crossed his face. "You like this, don't you? Having something to be a part of again? I saw the way your face lit up when you explained to Agent Fowler what you wanted for Team Prime, and I haven't seen you that excited in a while."
"That obvious, huh?"
"Not to the others, but to me."
I shrugged, glancing down at my hands. "I don't know. I've felt like it couldn't have been over after we restored Cybertron, because I still had these powers but I just didn't know what to do with them. I knew there had to be more, and when we were facing those Cybertronians, it was exciting because I was using my powers for more."
"You hate the sidelines," Finn concluded, and I nodded. "You and me both. Just promise me you won't do anything reckless while I'm gone. At least when I'm around, I can keep you in check, but if I'm gone for a few weeks..."
"Don't worry," I leaned forward to peck a kiss on his cheek. "I'll be good, promise. Nothing reckless. Well, more reckless than usual."
He snorted a laugh before pulling me closer, placing his lips on mine. My usual background noise of the millions of thoughts in my head went silent, the way it always did with him. With one hand in my hair and the other on my waist, all of my worries melted away as Finn tugged me towards him. Once we did pull back, there was a quiet buzz in my mind, the thoughts still dampened by him. A lock of hair had fallen across his face and I brushed it away, starting to chew my lip slightly.
"I'll miss you," I admitted quietly, remembering how long he'd have to be gone.
"You better," Finn joked and I swatted his arm. "I'm kidding. I'll miss you too, A, but I promise, I'll always be a phone call away."
"Good." I pulled him in for a final hug, wondering how I'd pull the next few weeks off without my strongest fighter.