The God of Storms and His Wife

Chapter 14: Close

     "Before we start our first lesson, we must meditate." The king says while we sit near a ash tree in the woods encircling his farms. We are both wearing gold and black tunics with matching pants and woven top clog shoes. I slowly open my eyes to see him staring at me. "I thought you're supposed to close your eyes when you meditate." I say.

"Not necessarily... You just have to find something or someone to focus on."

"Oh." I close my eyes and try to remember a place on Earth. If  I can think of a place I remember well on Earth, maybe I can will myself out of here and avoid an illicit affair. I squeeze my lids shut and a big hand gently shakes my shoulder. I open my eyes and the ground beneath me disappears. The king transforms into a huge mountain lion beside me. We are falling off the side of the cliff and I  grab a tuft of his light brown fur on his neck. I pull myself onto his back. He jumps from rock to rock until we reach the base of the cliff near a rivene. He transforms back into his human-like form beneath me. I move to get off of his back and he tucks his arms behind my knees locking my lower body in place on his back. He stands up and I instinctively wrap my arms around his neck to ensure my upper body does not fall to the ground. "Thanks for the save." I say. "Asher, you can't attempt to teleport away again. What if I wasn't there? You could've gotten hurt." He says. I nod as I catch my breath.

"Yesterday, you said this was the land of the living. If that's the case, is this Earth?"

"This isn't Earth. This is a realm that Earth exists in. When the time comes, I'll show you little Earth. It looks like marble. May I ask, what's the rush to get back to such a small place?"

"My family."

"Besides that. I'm trying to understand why you're trying to runaway without learning about how to control your powers. What if I let you use your powers unrestrained on Earth? You can't control where to teleport. Imagine yourself starting wars haphazardly. I know your husband is the God of Destruction but do you think you need to help him execute that job?" He shakes his head and swiftly removes his hold of me. I hop to the ground.

"I'm not trying to destroy stuff. I just don't want unnecessary drama."

"Life is dramatic. So, you want to be sent back to the underworld from whence you came."

"I didn't tell you I-"

"Asher, I know more than you've told me. I know that your son isn't in the mortal realm. He's being tutored by Death. The only being in the mortal realm right now is your husband. He's making battle plans while his family is in my view. You want to run back to him but he doesn't even want to assign tutors for you to learn to wield your power appropriately. Your mind isn't focused on what it needs to be focused on. If not your training, it should be focused on your son."

I walk away from him. A hand grabs my arm and yanks me back. He pulls my face close to his and stare into my eyes. "I-" I say breathlessly."Grow up! Stop letting the fear of what your husband would think ruin your opportunity to progress. I don't waste my energy on anyone and I haven't trained anyone but myself in my whole existence thus far. I'm willing to train you and it's not just because I'm extremely attracted to you. It's because I sense the potential to be great within you. Asher, I have the ability to guilt lock your soul here with me. Do not make me use it."

His lips hover near mine. "Can we get back to training?" I ask through shallow breaths. He hugs me and nuzzles his face into my neck. 
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Air throws a blue orb in the mouth of the open chimney. "Why are souls shaped like glowing balls?" He asks Death. Death digs a hand in a burlap bag and shrugs. "I don't know. I just process them. I don't know where they come from or how they're created." Death says.

Air rubs his sneakers against the dirt floor. "Why do the crimson souls stay in your bag and the blue ones go in the fire?"

"The crimson ones need further processing. Souls on Earth are supposed to reflect the color that is mostly seen of Earth from above. Earth is mostly blue because most of its surface is covered by water. If we let souls that aren't ready to assimilate to the land of the living in the living world, it would destroy Earth."

"I think I understand now. Where's my Momma?"

"She's safe."

"Is she with your wife and son?" Death throws a handful of blue souls onto the floor. They roll all over the ground. Air picks one up and stands near the stone base fireplace. "Your mother and my family are safe in the land of the living. There's nothing to worry about."

"I want to see my Momma." Death stops searching in his bag of souls. "Fine. I'll send you up but it'll be brief. Your lessons here are important and the more you learn the better you'll get at sending souls to their rightful destinations."

"Ok." Death walks to the double doors and a brief darkness flashes by them. They stand at the big oak door and Air touches the handle. He envisions his mother's black hair blowing in a gentle breeze as she stares at a green bud in a small flower pot atop a grassy hill.
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Whoosh! I move my hair behind my shoulders and tuck a strand behind my ear. I blow my breath on the bud like I am blowing out a lit birthday candle and try to focus my energy into making it bloom. I close my eyes. My first lesson is to make this flower bloom and all I've gotten it to do is grow its stem longer. Maybe if I close my eyes and imagine it blooming into a violet flower. I got this. I open my eyes. The bud blooms into a purple violet. "Momma!" Air yells. I turn and see him standing nearby. "Hey sweety, how's your training going?" I ask.

"It's boring. I feel like there could be a more fun way to sort souls like weighing them or something. Death has chosen a very boring way to sort them." He says and shrugs.

"Learning the basics is always boring but once you learn them you can mix it up and do it your own way." He nods and sits beside me on the hill. He rests his head on my lap and I play with his lazy curls.

"Momma, did you make this flower bloom?"

I nod. "Yes, it's the first lesson I've been assigned. I finally got through it. Just in time too. I wouldn't want to have to divide my attention between my lesson and my favorite little tiger." He giggles.

"Yeah because I would've won all your attention, right Momma?" I laugh and nod my head. This child...