Eris

As usual, my first reflex when I feel my body waking up is trying to go back to sleep. I can’t hear my alarm, and thus, it isn’t time to wake up. I turn on my side, only to hiss as my skin scratches against the stone beneath me.

“I’m sorry, but you have to wake up… There isn’t much time…” A soft, almost weak voice says, making me blink. Who’s that woman, and why is she in my room?

My eyes shoot open as my memories suddenly spear into my mind. The crash. The asphalt beneath me. Did I actually get thrown out of my car? But I’m not feeling any pain…

My palms press against the stone underneath me as I raise my upper body carefully, only to blink as I realize that I am not lying on pavement or asphalt like I first assumed. No, my skin is pressed against smooth, cut stone.

I raise my eyes, and blink at the girl who just addressed me.

And it is a girl, not a woman. And I don’t just say that because of her height, though that is a factor. Her childlike physique wasn’t limited to just her height, though it’s partially hidden by the too-big dress she’s wearing, the white cloth nearly brushing the floor beneath her, and the large collar only barely catches on her shoulders. The only break in the monochromatic outfit is the thin purple tippet thrown over her shoulders, so long that it actually does reach the floor- or it would was it not wrapped around her arms specifically to avoid that, I’d assume.

Her big, round purple eyes stare down at me as I slowly stand up, though they soon start staring up, our eyes locked onto one another as if magnetized. Her face is framed by equally purple bangs, and her smile was small and tired.

“I’m glad you’re awake…” She said, but even though she is right there in front of me, her voice sounds as if she’s speaking from another room. Or is she there at all?

Her body is nearly translucent, as if she was some kind of ghost, or hologram. I blink rapidly, before adjusting my glasses, but nope. The ghost girl is still there, and still translucent.

“H- Hi?” I half-say, half-ask, and she giggles softly, the sound like hearing windchimes on the other end of the house.

“Hello… I’m sorry, but we don’t have much time…” She says- no, repeats.

“Much time for what?”

“For me to talk to you… I’m too weak…” She says, and as if summoned by her words, her body- flickers.

She vanishes for a blink, and she’s back by the next, the skin around her large eyes creasing in exertion. “Please, listen to me… I don’t have much time… I have to tell you as much as possible…”

I force myself to swallow the questions climbing up my throat. “Okay. Okay. Lay it on me.”

The ghost nods, her smile relaxing a fraction in gratitude. “My name is Eris. I am the Goddess of Evil, Suffering, and Strife.”

The only reason I don’t immediately break my vow of silence is because I’m too stunned to speak up.

“This world you are now in is called Kivotio. It is a world parallel to your own, forged by us Gods. We survive through the faith of this world’s population, and to make sure it continues, we select Champions from your world every so often to walk this world in our stead, spreading our name and reinforcing our power. And I summoned you to be my Champion.” She says, her smile shrinking minutely.

“I’m sorry. Normally, a Champion would be offered a choice. Normally, I would appear to you in your world first, and offer you the opportunity. But I can barely manage to appear here in my own world- appearing in yours was simply impossible.”

Her smile falls entirely as her hands fist her dress in frustration. “I couldn’t even actually summon you properly. I had to catch a soul before it could pass on, and recreate your body in my world. Even just bringing you whole was too much for me. I-” She stops, blinking rapidly, tears pearling in the corner of her eyes, and my heart twinges.

“I couldn’t even bless you properly. I’m sorry. I- I’m so sorry…” She hiccups as tears roll down her cheeks, and before I can even think about it, I find myself kneeling, holding my hands out toward her.

“Hey, calm down- It’s okay. I mean, I’m still very confused, but as far as I can tell, if it weren’t for you, I’d probably be bleeding out or dying of hypothermia by now.” I reassure her, forcing down the shiver crawling up my spine as I discuss my apparently not-quite-avoided death. I reach out to hold the girl’s (Goddess?) hands- only for my touch to pass through her. I stare down at my hands overlaying on top of hers, and she giggles wetly.

Her hands pass through mine again as they rise to touch my cheeks. “No. It isn’t okay. I am the Goddess of Evil, Suffering, and Strife. The only purpose of my existence is to create suffering. You could’ve passed on peacefully, but selfishly, I stole you away from your rest. You’ll come to resent me, as you should.”

I blink as I stare into Eris’ wet eyes. That… That sounds horrible. She doesn’t sound like a Goddess, she sounds like some abused kid. I grit my teeth.

“No, I won’t. I forgive you.”

She blinks. “What?”

I force myself to smile at the Goddess. “I forgive you. For what you’ve done, and for all future harm. I forgive you for all of it, and thank you for saving my life. I’d rather live and suffer than die for some shitty job I hated. I’d be stupid to think otherwise.” My smile turns more genuine for a moment. “And if I ever do start acting stupid, feel free to throw this in my face.”

Eris stares at me for a moment. “Nobody wants to suffer.”

I shrug. “Hey. If you’re suffering, it means you’re alive. Pretty sure a life without suffering doesn’t exist. And doesn’t suffering make those moments of joy all the better?”

The Goddess stares at me for a moment longer, before her lips twitch, and she begins giggling madly. Her hands come up to smother them, but I wish she wasn’t hiding her smile. I have a feeling seeing one of those was rare.

“You are a strange human.” She says once she finally calms down. “But I suppose you might make a fitting Champion for the Goddess of Suffering.” She admits, looking down at her feet, before closing her eyes as her form flickers once more, more heavily this time.

“We’re out of time.” She softly says after her form stabilizes, though even then, it’s clearly less stable than before, her fingers almost glitching every time they move.

“Sorry for not staying silent like I said I would,” I say, but I’m not really sorry. I don’t regret speaking up.

Eris smiles. “Sorry for being so weak.”

She flickers again, and grimaces in exertion as she tries to hold her form. “You- don’t have my blessing but- you can still use this world’s mana! You aren’t powerless!” She exclaims, speaking up even as her voice fades more and more.

“Please- Escape the city! And live! Spread my name! I- I want to talk with you again…” She says, and I barely catch her words as her form vanishes one final time, and I stand alone in the room.

I worry my lip for a moment, staring at where Eris had stood just a second ago.

“Yeah. I wanna talk to you again, too, Eris.” I softly say to no one, hoping that, even if she couldn’t talk, Eris could still hear me.