Chapter 3  WITH GREAT POWER

Calypso was too busy laughing she didn't realize that Lysander had stopped. He then walked up to her and reached out a hand. " I know you may find me annoying but, I want to be friends so… shake on it?"

He said this while smiling in a way that she didn't even read his thoughts to know. His look said, "We shared a moment and I don't want you to kill me later so let's not die." That kinda look. She decided that once they got across she wouldn't have to see him again making this the easiest agreement of her life. " OK, If you say so." She took his hand gingerly and prepared to step on the monster as they approached his territory. As they approached Lysander pulled at her hand trying to let go after the handshake but it was too late for him. She grabbed onto his hand and didn't let go. Calypso could not afford to have him die on her while fighting such an easy monster. She bolted forward lugging Whinny behind and as soon as she stepped into the territory mark, the monster hurled a chunk of lava near her face but she dodged and pulled out her saber with the free hand and launched it directly toward the center of his forehead then she launched her self up threw Lysander over the beast making sure to cushion his fall using a gust of wind. After landing back on the ground she ran up the beast retrieved the saber she had plunged into his third eye. She began winding up to have the final cut combo, she began slowly backing away before running at speeds impossible for a normal person and using her momentum jumped and arched her sword across the bottom half cutting of its nubby feet. She then chopped off its head and a final blow to its heart sealed the deal and the monster melted back to the lava to regenerate. Walking over to assure Whinny's safety, Calypso almost jumped out of her skin when he grabbed onto her ankle shaking.

Lysander had just seen this so far what seemed like a kind-hearted girl, who also happened to be probably Death but he wasn't sure anymore, but that girl had just killed a 9ft lava monster like it was nothing. Vaulting over a giant while still managing to keep him safe and carrying such a husky sword! Who was "Calypso"? And why was she helping him?

"I'm doing it for your own good" Calypso announced to his own thoughts out loud. She stood with her hand out offering down to him.

As he reached up to meet her hand, his stomach echoed the sound his brain was long reminding him of. Cringing with embarrassment, he slowly got up but still very much in embarrassment looking around at the scenery around them. But quickly regretted the decision. All he saw depressed him. The bleary red skyline smudged with oranges and yellows that stood out against the stark dark glimmering almost blinding reflecting pointed rocks. "Hey. Hey! Look at me over here!" Calypso shook him back to face her and his hunger.

Calypso didn't think about what humans needed. She had forgotten what it was like to need to sleep or eat. Of course, she ate food. But she never needed it, and she did sleep and technically needed it but she just woke up from a 32-hour nap before this joyful adventure so she was good for now. So she now had an issue, people going on the Journey no longer had human bodies meaning there was no need for food. The only place near here to have food is the After which was still a hike, not to mention the monsters and guards along the way. Of course, she could do what she does for herself, conjure food using her abilities but that was tiring and she didn't honestly know if it was real or not since she never had a need it was just for taste. "Just go with the possibly fake food, it's better than nothing" Whinny leaned over her shoulder saying.

"What did you just say?" She couldn't believe that he could read her thoughts!

"You said that in your mind? It was so loud I thought it was aloud?!" Whinny said again replying to her thoughts which were soon growing threatening.

"How can you read my thoughts?! This shouldn't be happening! Ughh does this mean if I form personal attachments or stay with a victim too long that they can read my thoughts too?!!"

Calypso might regret that moment for a long while. She had just sprouted her thoughts, see she was used to talking out loud to herself all the time, and since she was alone all the time it was never a problem. Until now of course.

"So you're embarrassed then?" Whinny said with an *ahem* an extremely idiotic grin that looked like a fool that entertained a jester.

" Well, at least I'm entertaining " Whinny smiled before sitting down and patting the ground in front of him.

"I'm waiting. We should try your illusion magic first it might be real if you think really hard" He beamed just like a child.

"Fine I'll try it but just because I have been craving some Waintk," She said remembering the scent and taste of the light paper like sweet pastry that feels like a sheet of tissue paper but tasted of cream, sugar, cinnamon, and strawberries. Snapping back to her reality Calypso shut her eyes and got ready to begin. She swirled her hands as she prepared to conjure up some real food, hopefully. As she dove into a pool of concentration her mind retreated to a place where it always went when she had conjured up something real. Her human memories. In this case the reflections of her mother feeding her and Lyla warm Waintk, carrot lye soup with its earthy dirt smell wafting in her distorted memories. Of course, this wasn't accurate at all but this is what Calypso wanted it to be. It hurt as the actual scene played out through her mind. Her mother passed out on the floor from drinking and working all day reeking of sweat and beer, her father trying to cook watery dirt for them while also trying to sew clothes that we had well worn over the years. This happened every time. She was so used to the stabbing emotional pain her powers always carried. She had to get back through that is the hardest part. She thought of Lysander and the earth below her and the swaying in the wind, taking a deep breath she flashed open her eyes. Out of breath from the laboring process, she prepared to hit the ground, what she didn't expect was someone to catch her.

Even though he was still in shock that he could now read Calypso's mind he was more shocked when she began out of thin air creating a table with food. He tried to touch it to test out her suggestion it might not be real so it was an absolute shock when he grabbed a piece of bread and tried it out and it tasted just like bread! But when he stood up he began seeing flashing images before his eyes and for some reason, his other senses started smelling things that weren't there. Beer, A old man hunched over resting down over a burner sewing, a woman passed out on the floor. But the scenes flashed back and forth flipping between those images and pictures of the passed-out woman with instead of the frizzy graying hair, long golden-brown curls feeding Calypso and an older girl Waintk. Lysander began to get a pounding headache from the constant flashing between the two scenes finally he was able to pry open his eyes. He saw Calypso hyperventilating and breaking out in cold sweat her eyes flashed open and he saw her eyes colored in liquid gold that almost emitted a blinding glow but then she began to fall not wanting her to kick him and having to fake it again he caught her catching her head. She for a second lay looking the most peaceful and serene she had been since he had met her, then her eyes shot open back to their deep brown and shot him across the field.