Soul Searching

It was dark, she fell faster and faster. Pain ran throughout her stomach. She pulled her knees to her chest and tucked her head to her neck, assuming the fetal position. Her body began to slow its descent. She realized she was not dressed in her jeans and worldly clothes but rather a dress of fine material.

"Where am I? Am I dead?" The words that were supposed to be thoughts rang clearly from outside her. Her body stopped its descent and seemed to hover. In front of her a bright light appeared and slowly too the form of a human. This began to remind her of a TV episode she'd once seen.

"You are not dead." A beautiful voice said quietly. The lights cleared and the fairy human with silver-lilac hair starred at her.

"Queen Serenity-sama!" The girl gasped in her American accent.

"Hello child," she greeted.

"Where are we?"

"Your soul, everything here you've created through need, thank you for needing me."

"Need? I don't understand."

"It is simple really," another voice, stronger than Serenity's replied. A golden mist appeared to the left of Serenity.

"Who..."

"Mother," Serenity responded.

"Mother? But Serenity you do not really have a mother, at least not in the..."

"I am not quite the same Serenity, I am the one you created."

"So than your mother would be..."

"Me." The golden mist cleared and a woman with short golden-blonde hair in a pale blue gown appeared.

"Queen Caity of Allyican!"

"Hello creator, your soul has given birth and shelter to many. Some of us remain, while others of us..."

"Us? There are more than just the two of you?" She asked.

"Yes, each of us represents something to you."

" I still don't understand."

"You will."

"Mother, look," Serenity pointed towards Caity's left. What looked like a fallen star, burst into a human form. A woman with very long brown hair clad in a pale yellow gown with an embroidered sign came forth.

"Do not be afraid, warrior." She advised.

"Catherine, Queen of Virgo, why..."

"To guide and help you."

"I'm dreaming, I must be."

"This is no dream, you are in your soul."

"Respectfully, Queen Catherine, I cannot be awake or conscious."

"You are not conscious."

"So it worked."

"Not quite."

"Death!" Came a shout. A yellow light swirled next to Catherine and when I cleared a woman with silverish-brown hair and a yellow gown with red trim and a staff stepped towards the hovering child.

"Danyers?"

"Correct, death."

"You were supposed to bring life, you're the spirit of life!" the girl snapped.

"Do not snap, Death is why you are here."

"So I am dead."

"No"

No? Oh I am so confused!" She whined.

"Stop whining, it is not becoming, Princess," another voice reprimanded. It was warm and soft, yet harsh and convicting. A deep blue glow came from the space next to Danyers. A woman with golden hair dressed in a deep blue gown materialized. Of all the women before, this one the girl could not believe to exist within her soul.

"You cannot be here," she said.

"Oh but I am. Do you know who I am?"

"You are Queen Amarei of Eveana."

"Good, now who are you?"

"Me? I am...I am...." She drifted off. Serenity held out her hands out in front of her and a wand and crystal appeared. "The crescent moon wand and the silver crystal!"

"Very good child." Caity held out her hands and a staff appeared horizontally above them. She grasped it.

"The staff of Allyican," the child identified.

"Correct creator." Catherine opened her right hand to reveal an orb in her palm.

"The constellation orb."

"Wonderful warrior." The remaining two held their places.

"Danyers don't you..."

"I only have this weapon and the powers of the Life."

"And you, Amarei?"

"Nothing, I was given nothing." In a mixture of mist and light the blackness cleared away to a garden more beautiful than that of Eden's. There were willows, cherry blossoms, orchids, roses of every color, and other breathtaking flora and fauna. The girl looked around and saw a fountain like that in Disney movie, but real. The women stood to her sides and watched over her.

"Where are we?" Amarei smiled at the other women.

"We are still in your soul."

"If this is my soul than that black abyss is NOT part of it," the girl announced.

"It most certainly is, that black abyss is good majority of your soul," Amarei snapped.

"You would not have done what you did, had it been otherwise," Danyers added.

"You are a warrior, but even warriors are allowed to cry," Catherine said.

"I AM NOT A WARRIOR!" Catherine looked sympathetically to the others.

"Do you want to know why you are here?" Amarei inquired, getting tired of the games.

"Yes!"

"You are searching," Caity replied.

"Oh? For what?"

"A way, a path," Serenity responded.

"A way for what? If it's a way out, I've already found one."

"That was not what she was referring to," Danyers informed.

"Oh? Enlighten me."

"You have not discovered why we remain here."

"Well I would if Amarei would asking things, and one of you would give me a clue."

"We cannot tell you," Serenity whispered.

"You must realize what we each represent," Caity declared ignoring her daughter.

"Various stories I've written?"

"No, individually what do we represent?" The girl was quiet.

"What do they represent?" Again her thoughts came from outside her head. "I suppose, Serenity, you represent destiny, sacrifice, maybe selflessness."

"Yes my child." And she vanished.

"Where..."

"Continue," Amarei ordered. The girl glared over at her creation, but moved on.

"Danyers, you represent new beginnings, unconditional love, and life."

"Yes, death." And she too vanished.

"Catherine of Virgo, you must represent unconditional love too, leadership, determination..."

"Yes warrior, you are catching on," she praised before disappearing.

"Only two now, your first and last," Caity reminded.

"I know, but it's hard to decide what you represent."

"Think, you know this, it's buried deep within you. Acknowledge it, no one but us can hear you."

"Wait, I want to know what happened, how I got here."

"If you can guess what Caity represents than I'll tell you," Amarei bargained. The girl starred at the Queen. She refused to acknowledge her feelings at that moment for fear they would be outside her.

"Very well, Caity you would represent hope in some cases, motherhood, and...I suppose intelligence."

"You suppose correctly, creator. Till we meet again." Than as was expected she vanished.

"Tell," the girl demanded.

"The wound is not serious."

"How could it not be serious? I shoved that thing..."

"It is not, you are unconscious, but you'll awake."

"I do not want to."

"You do not have a choice, besides there are others who wish you wake, and they are stronger than your self hatred," Amarei explained. "Now what do I represent?"

"Trust you to change the subject, I swear sometimes you're just like...."

"Like who?" The girl paused.

"No one," she mumbled. "Queen Amarei, you represent the fact that good and evil coexist in every being and that sometimes, no matter how terrible your evil deeds, the good ones make up for it and your are good."

"Good start, what else?"

"Else? Um...courage, intelligence, unconditional love, the fact that adults can be wrong, not that you like admitting it."

"I am impressed, now you may learn the answer to what you seek," Amarei said. Around the girl the women reappeared in a semi-circle. The five joined hands and lights surrounded them. The five combined into one, that was all of them and yet none of them. When the lights cleared the girl felt her heart stop.

"Hello Alyson."