Who?

"But there are four of us here," Garsam pointed out. Selena paused and nodded, "Indeed, for some reason during the reincarnation, the true spirit of Ur split." The four looked at each other. How were they to tell who was who? Aria recalled Selena's early scrutiny of her and Ivy. Did they each have half of Ur's true spirit? "Isis," Selena called. The large wolf circled the four. Then she released a piercing howl. Everyone's eyes started to glow. Both Garsam and Ares' eyes glowed violet, while for Aria and Ivy, only one eye glowed. It was now clear where Ur's divided true spirit lay. Ivy's heart pounded in her chest. She was an Acabi, something her coven couldn't ever comprehend. For them, she had been like grass, trampled and spat upon. She felt a strong urge to make them pay for everything they had put her through. But first, she had to deal with the evil demon, become the hero she never thought she'd be. Selena held out her hand, pale, slender, and charming. "Do you accept your burden, Acabi?" Garsam shrugged. Pushing to her feet, she sauntered over to Selena. Ivy stood up and slowly trudged forward. They both touched her hand as a sign of acceptance. Aria remained seated on the floor, her eyes trained on the fire. Ares stood behind her, watching. Nobody or anything being said got to him as she occupied all his attention. "Aria," her name rolled off Selena's lips like cherished wine. Aria found herself looking up at the immortal beauty before her. Aria didn't want any of this. She wanted no part in the Burden. She had to find her parents and reunite their family and then worry about graduating high school, getting a job, getting married, and so on. Just the simple yet complicated stuff of life. She did not want to be involved in this magical conspiracy, yet as she looked at Selena before her, her hands slowly stretched forward. Someone caught her arm, pulling her out of her trance. "You said this was our last life, explain," Ares questioned. He might have had his eyes on Aria, but he clearly heard everything the deity said. "Still one for details as always," Selena tinkled with laughter. "I tried to sparsely use you lot, but I still needed you to keep peace 9 times in the past millennium. My Acabi are perfect...but they only have ten lifetimes, and nine are gone." "Well, I wasn't really counting on a second life before," Garsam shrugged. Beside her, Ivy nodded. "And once we are free of this lifetime's burden, when we defeat the evil, what then?" Ares pressed on. Selena paused, her eyes drooped. "When you succeed? My most perfect creations die." *** "Hey!" Garsam jumped from the sudden cold. Her eyes focused to see that her clothes were wet and sticking to her body. The outline of her bound chest clearly showing through the soaked top. She looked at the man opposite her. Ares was not spared; he was also soaking wet and had a thunderous expression. They both turned to the culprit holding a bright yellow bucket; Vel frowned down at them. "You've finally snapped out of it." With his words, Garsam finally noticed their odd position. She remembered going to sleep on a high tree branch, but now she and Ares sat cross-legged facing each other. "What happened?" She asked. Her head felt slightly heavy. "I should be asking you; I woke up and found you both in a trance." He pulled her up; once standing, she shook his hand away. "What did you see?" "Nothing," she muttered. The goddess had emphasized the secrecy of their mission till the danger was revealed. Apparently, the demon was still dormant. "What more do you know about the Children of Hope?" Ares asked Vel. Garsam's eyes widened as she frantically signaled for Ares to keep mum. He ignored her, of course. Vel harrumphed. "Why are you suddenly asking; you didn't seem to take me very seriously before?" Behind Vel, Garsam mouthed 'No no no!' "We saw Selena; Aria was there too." "Urgh, kill me," Garsam groaned. Vel looked between both of them. "You...saw who?!" He grabbed Ares by the shoulder and shook him. "Seriously??" "What did she look like? Did you see her legendary wolf? Was she beautiful...wait what did she say??" "She said evil is rising, and we have to stop it." "I knew it! The legendary violet eyes; I knew you both were...wait, you saw Aria? But she doesn't have the matching aura?" "It was weakened; her spirit was split into two, a strange little witch had the other." "Well, let's hurry back to the village and meet up with her," Vel said; he snapped his fingers, and the camping tents and fire vanished. "Before we leave, tell us more about the Children of Hope." Vel suddenly turned solemn. "I was so excited to ask that I forgot something important; the Children of Hope were not known; they were entirely forgotten by history." "Then how did you know?" "Well, the only record of them is in an eternity scroll, over two hundred years ago, Ai one of the warrior guards wrote it as a letter to his next incarnation to find his lover Ur; apparently, he knew the next reincarnation....would be their last." "Of course," Ares whispered. "She said we wandered in Vhail after our burden was gone; that means memories of us must have vanished." There was silence. Then Ares started moving; Vel and Garsam followed. They were all distracted by various thoughts. Garsam worried for her mother. She was already not favored by her father. If she, the heir, died and was erased from memory, then her mother's life would be miserable. Ares worried about Aria. They had barely just found each other now there was a prospect of being separated forever. They could not reject the burden, but he could not just let her disappear after it's all over. Vel didn't want to lose his best friend. Aside from that, he didn't care, for the cross-dressing wolf pup or for Aria, especially not after her mother left him to be with a human.