The sound of rusty chains dragged along the ground as it released Aphrodite's limbs one after another. The tightness around her wrists loosened, but her body was too frail to support itself from falling. With the tightly bound cuffs releasing her ankles free, she fell forward - cracking her kneecaps. "You don't know how to warn others when you release the damn cuffs?!" Aphrodite's chest heaved heavily as she attempted to settle her inconsistent breathing.
Almost immediately upon her fall, the engraved mark on her ankle spread tangling branch patterns up her sagged skin. Starting from the corner of her eyes, wrinkles were drawn like abstractive scribbles. From curved lines around her dark eye-circles to the corner of her lips, her face resembled a million-year-old witch who lived without skin care routines. The roots of her hair turned gray, while some were tinted white. Her eyelids drooped, covering half her sight. Dehydration resulted in the fine cracks across her lips, making it difficult for her to speak with her lips spread apart.
Between the gaps of her crease-filled figure, loose skin gushed forward - similar to melted cheese. Freckles and dark spots covered her exposed skin, leaving her in a haggard appearance. From her jawline to chest, the loose skin rested downward, covering her cleavage.
Her eyes grew crimson when her sight landed on the layers of crinkled skin that settled on her chest when she moved. It wasn't her imagination nor was she living a dream; she has aged. Without the youthfulness she once had, her title as the Goddess of Beauty and Love would be the laughing stock of the entire realm. Unable to accept reality, she screamed hysterically at Eros. "You took away my youth!! Give it back!!"
Hearing the lack of remorse in her voice stimulated Eros' eagerness to smash her bones to dust particles. As the strength of his power built up from the ground, Eros felt a warm touch on his wrist. He turned sideways to meet the Oracle's serene stare and ceased his power instantly.
"Bring her back to where you two came from. Let me warn you, Zeus, to never step foot in my underworld ever again. If you or any one of your fellows come to cause trouble again, I won't guarantee whether you could get out safely. Now, scram." Eros summoned a distorted portal and sucked both of them out of the cell.
Curves of the distorted portal enlarged as it gulped two figures into its mouth and swallowed them. As its task to recycle junk was completed, it zipped its mouth close and disappeared. Once everything returned to its original state, a peaceful atmosphere surrounded the place. With a quick snap from Eros' fingers, the entire dungeon altered and became his chamber.
Respectfully, he led the elder to a comfortable cushioned seat where they proceeded to discuss about Psyche. "Is my wife alright?" Eros questioned with a helpless smile as he poured tea into a cup for the elder to drink.
Taking the tea cup from his hands, the freshly brewed tea conquered the Oracle's senses. He smiled, took a sip of the top-quality tea and spoke in a gentle tone. "Eros, Psyche's soul has arrived safely, but she will not be reincarnated this soon. I sent her soul to my wife, Fiona on earth. We must abide the rules of witchcraft and wait for the fortunate one to appear before reincarnating Psyche's soul. Like I've asked earlier, would you be willing to wait for her no matter how long it takes to reunite with her? Your response was a strongly determined yes."
"Is that answer still the same?" When the Oracle finished speaking, he lifted his eyes and smiled. A familiar blazing fire ignited in Eros' eyes, showing his devotion for his wife. Without a doubt his answer was still the same as before.
"Very well. Here is a gift to you." The Oracle's right palm faced up, creating a shimmering light around his hand. Hues of pastel peach glowed like a sunset's reflection on bodies of water as small deformed leaves in indigo blues began piecing together on the palm. Similar to winter trees where branches shred naked and darkness shadowed its trunk, a newborn crow nestled against its warm bed on the Oracle's palm.
"A crow?" Eros raised his left brow as the baby crow's bed was carefully placed on the glossy surface of the table.
"His name is Gavin. He is neither a deity nor a demon. Since you've never visited earth before, I must warn you about the risks you will take in the future. Whether you're a demon or deity, you must extract your soul from your physical body when you go down to earth. Your power will significantly reduce, and time is also limited on earth."
Caressing the crow's tiny head with his index finger, the Oracle watched as the small creature rubbed his own head and pulled the blanket over himself. "This little guy will not have any troubles entering and leaving earth. To keep you updated with Psyche's information, he will be able to help you tremendously. Train him until he could successfully change into human form."
Although skeptical, Eros believed in the elder's words and kept the baby crow in his chamber. "Thank you for the precious gift. I will protect him from harm and train him to be strong. I will patiently wait for the day when I could reunite with Psyche." He smiled as he teased the baby crow's puffy cheeks that were sticking out of the blanket.
Meanwhile, at the top of a hill on earth where the environment was filled with fresh spring grasses, humming sounds echoed soothingly from a small wooden house. The shadows on the patchwork of greens varied as soft marshmallow clouds drifted past the surrounding area. Birds chirped rhythmically as lines of winged species landed on the clothesline outside the kitchen window.
From the transparent window, a youthful lady with luminous glass skin and a gorgeous smile could be seen throwing ingredients into a pot of soup. With one hand stirring the content in the pot, her other hand reached out for extra spices. Her eyes were fixated on the recipe book at the counter as she continued mixing the soup.
Squeal
A high-pitched adorable sound echoed by her left ear, gaining her attention. The smile on her face lifted as she welcomed her son back home. 'Welcome home, Kyle. How was your trip to your father?" She turned off the stove after sprinkling bottled spices into the pot and continued stirring.
Seconds later, peach blossom petals appeared in a whirlwind manner as the mini fennec fox cat-walked his way out of the portal with the blue rose in his mouth. Seeing his mother was occupied with preparing food, he placed the rose on the counter and sneakily climbed up the shelves from behind. Steadily, he jumped onto her shoulder to give her a peck on the cheeks.
He let out squeaks in response to her inquiry, earning a laugh from her. "He's still the same old, isn't he? Well, let's see what he has for me this time. The soup will be ready in a minute, so while we wait, show me what he handed to you."
Obediently, Kyle hopped back to the counter, picked up his rose and wiggled it gently. When the rose refused to function properly, his furry paws slid up the stem. He peeked into the center of the rose, but couldn't see anything. Blowing warm air onto his paws, he whacked the sides of the closed flower and continued waving it around to force it open.
Dropping the malfunctioning flower on the counter, Kyle circled around it before grabbing the stem to peek into it again. Once his face appeared in front of the flower again, it suddenly blossomed and spurted water all over his body. Gently rubbing his small face with his soft paws, he tossed the blue rose aside and summoned a blow dryer.
Within a minute, his body dried up entirely. He held the rose once again and wiggled it gently on his mother's palm. This time, the rose cooperated properly and safely delivered Psyche's soul to Fiona.
"This is a human's soul?" She looked at her son with an inexplicable expression. Her eyes trailed to the entrance of the rose and sparked as words floated out of it. Once the words lined up in front of her, she read it and understood what she needed to do.
She held Psyche's soul in her left hand and raised two fingers from her right one. Closing her eyes gently, she began scribbling with her fingers and chanting words to herself. When she stopped, two petals floated out of Psyche's soul and pressed on top of Fiona's eyelids.
As the petals glowed vibrantly, Fiona witnessed memories from Psyche's past through her own eyes. The petals disappeared after the flashback was completed. Fiona let out a lonely sigh and held Psyche's soul in her hands. "I understand it now. I promise I will do what I can to reunite you and Eros. I hope it'll be a happy ending this time."
She strolled across the house to the living room and secured Psyche's soul on an element glassed cushion. Fiona whispered, "Before I could help you reincarnate, stay here and rest well. You'll be able to absorb natural elements in this position. When the time comes, I will set you free to a new beginning."
Hearing the squeaks from the dining table, Fiona smiled. "Yes. Yes. Mommy's coming, dear!" Before leaving to the kitchen, her gaze softened at the sight of an old picture frame next to Psyche's soul.