The Leaf

Lady sighed as she sat on the bare floor in front of their hut and pouted a little, she was more or less weak from frustration and anxiety. From family problems to goddess problems to Vesi's problems to whatever the hell laid in wait for her was seriously driving her insane. She didn't ask for anything, they were just thrown upon her when she wasn't even ready to accept or to even go near.

"Pouting like that is not going to help anything" Mai chastised a little also sitting by Lady.

"I know, it's just that I don't know whatever that I should do now" Lady exhaled and threw her hands around.

"There is a solution to Vesi's problems just that it isn't easy and you might have to sacrifice a lot" Mai threaded carefully but spilling out the words carelessly all the same.

"Why do I feel that you are just being your usual self and acting like you don't care?" Lady raised a skeptical eyebrow at Mai.

"Maybe?" Mai shrugged.

"Anyways, can you elaborate a little about whatever you were saying earlier?" Lady asked with her interest peeked.

"So I was saying you can help Vesi but you might have to loose a lot of things in the process" Mai said condescendingly.

Lady grimaced from the goosebumps that developed on her skin and sent shivers down her spine "Did you have to be so dramatic about it?"

"I'm not being dramatic, it's just the truth , the truth that has not been twisted and sweetened" Mai shrugged again.

Lady sighed and then they heard another scream from Vesi. Hurriedly, both of them went into the hut to find Vesi on the floor, rolling around and allowing tiny grains of sand to stick to his apparel and face. His face was glistening with a sheen of sweat, his breath was coming in short pants and it seemed as if he was almost at his whims of life, like he had a tiny shard of life left.

"What now?" Lady scoffed and earned a smack on her back.

"Patience, girl, patience" Mai rolled her eyes at Lady which Lady thought was absolutely unnecessary.

"So what are we going to do now?" Lady asked now calm but the sneering underneath her tone could not been dismissed.

"Help me lift him up to the bed for now" Mai said.

Together with their power, they lifted Vesi onto the bed and then Mai instructed Lady to repeat a series of unknown words after her and right after the last of the words had rolled of their tongues, a blue blinding light surrounded Vesi's body and he seemed to calm down from whatever that he was going through. Mai placed her right pointer finger on Vesi's forehead and closed her eyes, she started muttering gibberish words, at least that was what Lady thought but to Mai she was drawing water from her waterfall in the God realm, to use it to reduce the pain Vesi was going through at the moment. She could do at least that to help alleviate her dear Makri's troubles.

Mai removed her hand after she was done and she breathed a sign of relief, that spell was no small one, drawing energy and materials from one realm to another was no easy thing. Lady also felt the weakness of Mai, how it seemed her power had been drained and was recuperating. So she asked;

"You seem drained?"

"Yes, a little but it's nothing to worry about now. We have to attend to the more pressing matters now" Mai replied.

"And what would that be?" Lady asked.

"Finding the solution, finding the leaf" Mai replied "But remember, that with every action comes with a consequence, and this one might require more than what you are willing to offer, Lady"

Lady internally flinched, Mai used her name 'Lady', which must mean that what she was talking about was indeed serious. Lady looked at Vesi and weighed her pros and cons, what she could do and her few insecurities that were roaring their heads inside their mind.

"Can you at least tell me what I might be losing in this?" Lady asked a little sorrowful, her heart already clenching in her ribcage.

"It's not certain" Mai began "It depends on you and this is the second time I have told someone to get this leaf"

"And when was the first time?" Lady asked.

Mai sighed and looked above, her lips tugged up revealing a smile.

******** A long time ago******

Mai watched as Erzhi twisted and twisted in pain, his mind was in a major state of chaos, he was not able to decipher wrong from right. He had almost severed Balik's head off not long ago. Mai knew the only solution was to go and look for the leaf, Aya's only weakness or she had to go head on with Aya and kill her but Aya was no where easy for Mai to reach her. Aya was in her own domain, her own twisted illusion of a world and Mai wouldn't be able to reach her even if she wanted to.

Her body trembled from both anxiety and frustration, it was the first time she, the goddess of life and creation, the goddess of the realms, the goddess of the realms, one of the only three most powerful beings in all of the God realms, was feeling helpless and almost hopeless. She loved her brother Erzhi too much to let him go, she wouldn't be able to stand the guilt, it will cripple her for the rest of her immortal life.

"Mai, stay strong, I know you'll be able to come up with a solution" Balik encouraged Mai.

Mai sniffed and bobbed her head, allowing the words of encouragement to seep through her bones "Of course. Thank you Balik" she held Balik's hand outstretched towards her and squeezed it, wishing to feel anything existential, something to tell her that there was still hope for her.

She kissed the top of Erzhi's head and stood up, her eyes lighted and brimming with determination "I'll go get the leaf, come what may" she said and raised her chin up.

"Mai, are you sure?" Balik asked Mai just to be sure she was not doing anything she didn't want to.

"I'm absolutely sure" Mai answered firmly "I hope I can borrow your powers for this journey" she continued.

"Absolutely" Balik said and bowed with a knowing smile on his face, as the god of transportation and the skies, it wasn't always that he got to show his immense power of transportation.

Balik raised his hand towards the skies and they opened and darkened revealing a single streak of light that flashed through them and then a circle of lightning began descending from the skies, the perfect glow of yellow of the lightning almost blinding. The circle finally rested on the ground right in front of their feet. An enormous gate rose out if it and Balik gestured to it;

"Mai, you can use this gate, I infused it with a little spell of mine so you can access anywhere and anytime you want" he smiled.

Mai smiled back" Thank you Balik"

And with that, she opened the enormous gate and stepped into the bright lights behind the gate. She glanced back at Erzhi's squirming body and then closed the gate behind her with a solemn smile. She closed her eyes to get accustomed to the intense bright lights before opening them after the lights were no more harsh to her eyes.

The first thing her ears caught was the melodious chirpings of birds and her eyes caught sight of gigantic but beautiful trees and she seemed to be in the middle of it. She realised that she was in a wide forest, extremely serene and very soothing. It calmed down her nerves that were almost bursting with anxiety, she felt a little whole. Not forgetting why she was there in the first place, she closed her eyes again and took in deep breaths to calm down, she was going to need a calm flow of energy later. Mai smiled and opened her eyes and recalled what the Supreme One had told her earlier about the leaf,

"It's a leaf but not leaf, it has no definite shape "He had said "You can only find it if it wants you to and that would even be after it concludes that you have a calm flow of energy and a pure mind"

Mai scoffed with disdain, the leaf was as painstakingly annoying like what it would be used against, they both were in their heads in their own world. But then she also recalled the final words of the Supreme One,

"But remember, you'll have to sacrifice for this journey in order to get what you wish for"

Mai had asked but the Supreme One had said that, he was not certain, the sacrifice depended on her. Mai shook her head, calming her nerves that were raising their heads again,

"Let's get this over with"