Chapter 63: Shocking Realization
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Gwen's eyes snapped open like someone had jabbed her with a cattle prod. For a second, she just stared at the sky, processing. Then her gaze found Grandpa Max's unconscious but definitely breathing form, and her whole body sagged with relief.
"Ben?" Her voice came out scratchy, like she'd been gargling gravel.
"Hey there, Spark Plug." I dropped to my knees beside her, trying for a reassuring smile. The Ancient One stopped beside me, looking down. "How you feeling?"
She started to answer, then froze. I watched the exact moment the memories hit, her eyes going wide, face draining of color. Her hand flew to her chest, fingers splaying like she was checking if she was still solid.
"Oh god," she whispered. "Oh god, I... I almost..."
"Calm down, Gwen," I caught her hand, squeezing gently. "You didn't do anything wrong. You were protecting family."
"I almost turned into..." She couldn't even finish the sentence. "Ben, I felt it. All that power, all that... I wanted to unmake her. Not just kill her. I wanted her to never have existed. And I have a feeling I might have succeeded..."
The raw fear in her voice made my chest tight. Today, the brilliant, controlled, always-has-a-plan Gwen looked absolutely terrified of herself.
"But you didn't," I said firmly. "I stopped you."
Something flickered across her face at that. Gratitude, definitely, but underneath... something else. Her fingers twitched in mine.
"You drained me," she said quietly. Not an accusation, just a statement. "I felt you pulling the energy out, taking what I'd become and just... taking it. Honestly, I hated it… at that moment, at least. It felt like I was losing part of myself."
"I had to. You were going to—"
"I know." She pulled her hand back, wrapping her arms around herself. "I know you saved me. Saved everyone. It's just..."
She trailed off, but I got it. That transformation hadn't just been power, it had been pure Gwen, distilled down to her most fundamental self. And I'd literally sucked it out of her. Even if it was to save her life, her current life anyway, that had to feel violating on a level I couldn't fully understand.
Before either of us could say more, the Ancient One cleared her throat. She'd been standing beside me for a while now, but she only got noticed now with that spooky silence all magic users seemed to master.
"Gwendolyn," she said gently. "How are you feeling?"
Gwen straightened, and I watched her shift gears from traumatized teenager to eager student so fast it gave me whiplash. "I have questions. About what happened and about what I am."
"I thought you might." The Ancient One settled gracefully onto a piece of rubble, somehow making it look like a throne. From nearby, Charmcaster perked her ears. "Ask."
"What are 'Anodites'?" Gwen started immediately. "Grandpa mentioned them once, but he never explained. They're energy beings, right? Made of mana?"
"In the simplest terms, yes. Anodites are consciousness given form through pure life energy. They exist in a state between physical and metaphysical, capable of manipulating the fundamental forces that underpin reality."
"And I'm... part that?"
"Your grandmother was an Anodite. The potential has always existed within you, though it typically remains dormant in hybrid offspring. Benjamin for example. He didn't inherit the Spark." The Ancient One's gaze sharpened. "Your emotional state triggered a partial transformation. Grief and rage are powerful catalysts."
"But I could feel myself... disappearing." Gwen's voice got smaller. "Like Gwen Tennyson was just a mask I was wearing, and underneath was just power."
"That is the danger," the Ancient One confirmed. "Anodites often take the form of other mortal species to experience life. But when they ever fully transform back to their true form, they often struggle to remember why they ever chose to be human. I can imagine the effect must be much stronger for a half-blood who's never fully transformed before. The power is seductive. Absolute."
I noticed Charmcaster hanging back, purple eyes fixed on Gwen with an expression I couldn't quite read. Envy? Fear? Maybe both? Here was Gwen, naturally gifted with power that most sorcerers would kill for, terrified of what she might become. Meanwhile, Charmcaster had spent years clawing for every scrap of magical knowledge, only to be told by a goddess that her life's goal was impossible.
Life really wasn't fair sometimes.
"Is there a way to control it?" Gwen asked. "To access the power without losing myself?"
"There are techniques. Meditation practices, emotional regulation exercises, ways to anchor your human consciousness even during transformation." The Ancient One paused, studying Gwen with those ageless eyes. "In the coming days, you'll begin to notice changes. Enhanced perception, involuntary mana manipulation, possibly even partial transformations during emotional spikes. When you return from Mexico, speak with your grandfather. He has experience with this."
"Haah, I don't know if Grandpa will—"
A groan from behind us cut her off. We all turned to see Grandpa Max sitting up, one hand pressed to his chest.
"Grandpa!" Gwen practically flew to his side, and I wasn't far behind.
"Easy there, pumpkin." He caught her hug with a laugh that sounded way too healthy for a guy who'd taken a death blast to the chest. "I'm okay. Actually..." He flexed his fingers, looking puzzled. "I feel better than okay. Like I just had the world's best nap."
"Quetzalcoatl healed you," I explained. "Said something about making you feel a decade younger. Divine healthcare, apparently."
"Quetzalcoatl…? Huh? A god? Healed me?" He shook his head, still processing. Then his expression sobered as he looked between Gwen and me. "Kids, I'm sorry. I should never have brought you into something this dangerous. This was supposed to be a summer vacation, not–"
"Oh, shut up," Gwen interrupted, surprising all of us. "What were we supposed to do, let you handle this alone? You think we'd just sit in the RV playing cards while you fought immortal vampires?"
"Besides," I added, tapping the Omnitrix. "Pretty sure this thing comes with responsibilities. Can't exactly use it just for joyrides and pranks."
Grandpa looked at us for a long moment, and I saw about six different emotions cross his face. Pride, worry, love, and something that might have been grief for the normal childhood we'd never get back. Well, we're already adults.
"When did you two grow up on me?" he asked softly.
"Probably somewhere between the giant tick and the death god," I said, which got a wet laugh from Gwen.
The Ancient One cleared her throat gently. "I hate to interrupt, but there are matters we should discuss. The full scope of what occurred today, and what it means going forward."
So we gave him the rundown. The fight with Selene, my Feedback transformation, Gwen's near-ascension to energy being, and of course, the divine intervention. Grandpa took it all in with the calm of a man who'd seen too much to be truly surprised anymore.
"Quetzalcoatl himself," he mused when we finished. "That's... significant. I knew Gods existed, but… I'd never seen one intervene like this. Such a major God, too."
"She's a lady, it turns out, and she seemed quite interested in young Benjamin," the Ancient One noted, and something in her tone made me tense. "In fact, she seemed almost familiar with him. As if they'd met before."
"Huh?" I blinked. Sure, I knew her from a mobile game in my past life, but that hardly counted. Plus, that was from my side, not hers. "Did you get that type of vibe from her? I'm not sure. Well, she said she'd been watching us, so maybe that's why?"
The Ancient One tilted her head slightly. "Perhaps. Gods often take mortal forms to walk among us during events like this. Especially this one, where she was one of the judges behind the curtains. Tell me, in the last few days, did you encounter a snake or something similar? Perhaps a woman who resembled her?"
"Nah, I-" I paused. It took me a moment, but the realization hit me like a lightning bolt. My brain short-circuited for a solid three seconds as I processed the implications. "No fucking way," I said, turning to Grandpa and Gwen with what probably looked like a pole-axed expression. "Joan. The farmwife. She was... Quetzalcoatl was Joan!"
The facial features, the impossible curves, even the way she'd moved with that supernatural grace. How had I not seen it? The literal Aztec goddess of love and fertility had been... and I had...
I looked up at the sky, where Venus hung like a bright jewel in the darkening heavens. As if responding to my realization, the planet seemed to pulse once, a cosmic wink that confirmed my suspicions.
"Ben?" Gwen's voice sounded strange. "What about Joan?"
"I..." How did you explain to your cousin and grandfather that you'd unknowingly had a one-night stand with a deity? Even if it was some mortal form. "We should probably get going. Long drive back to Texas."
Grandpa's eyes narrowed slightly, and I knew that look. "You think that lady Joan was Quetzalcoatl? Hmm… not impossible. After all, these 'five guardian families' tasked with protecting the magical tablets are heavily connected to this event. Since this event had been a play for the gods, the families being Gods themselves playing mortals won't be too surprising."
"Indeed," the Ancient One said, and was that amusement in her voice? "Before you go, however..." She turned to Charmcaster, who'd been silent through the entire exchange. "Hope. I agree with Lady Quetzalcoatl's offer to you. Kamar-Taj has resources that could help you find a new path."
Charmcaster straightened, and I guessed she might accept. After all, she seemed to have accepted Quetzalcoatl's words about respecting the dead, so she might abandon this dark path. I was wrong. Her chin lifted in that defiant way I was starting to recognize.
"Thanks, but no thanks." Her voice was steady, but I caught the uncertainty underneath. "I've never been much for rules and structure. I'll find my own way."
"I expected as much. The door remains open," the Ancient One said simply. "Should you change your mind."
As we started gathering ourselves to leave, I couldn't help but marvel at how much had changed in just a few hours. We'd come here to stop a weapon from falling into the wrong hands. Instead, we'd glimpsed the machinery of the universe, fought beings of unimaginable power, and apparently, I'd retroactively hooked up with a goddess.
"Hey, Ben…" Gwen's voice was quiet as she helped Grandpa to his feet. "Thanks. For stopping me. For saving me from... myself."
"I always would," I said, and meant it. "That's what family does."
She smiled, and for a moment, things felt normal again. Then I remembered I'd have to explain the Joan situation eventually, someday, one day, and the moment passed. I thought I'd never meet that woman, that she was just a fling, but turns out I was the Goddess's fling instead, and we ended up meeting in no time. She should have at least told me Joan was her. If not for the Ancient One's keen eyes, I'd have never known.
This summer vacation was definitely one for the books. The very weird, very complicated, probably-need-therapy-after-this books.
But as we exchanged goodbyes with Plumbers still cataloging the impossible, and the Ancient One opened a portal directly to the RV, I couldn't shake the feeling that this was just the beginning. I also had to figure out what to do with Charmcaster, who'd decided to come into the RV with us for now.
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