Something disturbed my sleep and I opened my eyes to a blank room with high columns. What the hell? I sat up and blinked. Nope still here. I stood and walked further into the room and found a curled rocking bundle. I came closer and my eyes widened.

  “Myra!” I cried running over to the almost comatose girl. She was silently weeping and shaking, murmuring names over and over again. I caught a mama in between them. I stretched my hand out and wiped her face but it was instantly drowned in new tears.

  “What in the hell happened to you?” I whispered, picking her up and holding onto her.

  “She’s caught in a nasty illusion.”

  I turned to face a beautiful woman with galactic black eyes and brown skin wearing a blue dress.

  “How do you know? Did you put her into it?” I asked suspiciously.

  “No, but your council has and it is stealing her will to live. I cannot show her the truth but you may. You are tied to her,” she said, walking over to me and tugging on something. A thin strand of silvery stuff I recognized as my soul was tied to the rainbow that was her soul and vice versa. Of course! She was my tether to the spell from before. I was such an idiot. I could go into her and she into me. Those thoughts I was getting for the first day were hers. She thought like that? Strange.

  “How do I go inside her mind,” I asked.

  “Sit and lay down with her so that your fronts touch,” she said smirking and I blushed slightly.

  “Fine, but she better not smack me for this,” I muttered, lying us on our sides and getting us really close. I placed my arm around her and pushed our fronts flush. I blushed.

  “Now what?”

  “Now close your eyes and feel for your connection. I'll do the rest,” she said.

  I nodded and felt for the connection. I felt for the connection and instantly smelt her. Like a storm at sea, that’s what she smelled like. I followed the connection and when I blinked I was on Earth again in front of a burning building. I ran to the building. I knew no one had survived that. I heard sad crooning nearby and started to round the building. I found Myra in a ring of fire!

  “Myra!” I cried. The fire was slowly climbing onto her clothes and hair. It was surrounding her completely but she wouldn’t move! I would have to traverse the fire and get to her somehow. This was an illusion, right? I stretched my hand out to the fire. I hissed and pulled back my hand. It was pretty realistic for an illusion! I swore and ran through the fire. I couldn’t stop, drop, and roll because the ground was covered in more fire. Instead, I patted the flames down and ran to Myra’s side. I bent over and shook her, hard.

  “Myra, get up! Come on!” I yelled. Her eyes zoned in on my face and her arm reached to touch my cheek.

  “Jonah, you made it back too,” she said. “I swear I was going to come for you. I don’t know how I got back here on my own.”

  “That’s cause’ you’re not back. This is an illusion. A well-crafted one but an illusion. Nothing is real,” I said.

  “Mama. Juaquin and Mige are...alive?”

  “Most likely. Come on. Let’s get out of here.” I said.

  “I can’t. I hurt my back...didn’t I?”

  “Did you? Really?”

  She tried to move and whimpered, shaking her head. “I can’t move,” she said. “Leave me! It’s real! It's real!”

  “It’s a realistic illusion. I promise you that your family is safe. On my life!”

  “Then why does it hurt?”

  “I don’t know. Look, I’ll lift you from this circle,” I said.

  She nodded and I carefully scooped her up into my arms. She sniffed and buried her face in my shoulder. I blushed slightly and walked to the end of the flaming circle but every time I tried to leave the fire rose and burned us, pushing us back into the circle.

  “Shit!” I said.

  “Myra!”

  “Yo Myra!”

  “Hey girl where are you!”

  “Watch the fire! It’s alive!”

  “How can fire be alive?”

  The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  “Woah!”

  “See!”

  “Enough, both of you. We’re here for Myra.”

  “Yup. Myra!”

  Myra’s eyes brightened and she yelled. “Over here!”

  From the smoke appeared the same figures I’d seen from my visions. They all resembled Myra in some way except for the big black guy.

  “Strength, you’re water. Put this fire out,” said a redhead who looked very close to Arriana.

  “Yeah, going,” said the big black guy. He manipulated water and drowned the fire but it sprang back.

  “It’s magic fire,” he said.

  “No, it's an illusion. The only thing that will stop it, is if Myra stops believing in it,” said a tall bespeckled boy. I thought about that and gazed at a small glass the silver-haired woman was holding.

  “I have an idea,” I said. “Can I borrow the glass and does anyone carry something sharp like a knife?”

  “Thou does.”

  Everyone turned to stare at the young preacher dude.

  “What? One might need it for something,” he muttered, taking out a small knife from his robes.

  “You don’t think he was planning to cut our throats one day?” asked a neon-haired woman. She had dragon wings on her back

  “I would not! I have more dignity than that, Benny,” said the preacher dude.

  “Here,” said a completely black-clad dude.

  “Can you fill the glass with water?” I asked.

  “Sure,” the black guy said, swirling water into the glass.

  I turned to Myra. “Okay, one of you prick her finger and get her blood in the water. Myra, wish to see your family. This is like with the oracle. It might show you different things though,” I said and she nodded, letting the mini knife cut her and bleed her into the glass. I pulled my seer ability and touched the water. Myra looked into the water and gasped. I didn’t ask what she saw. It was private but by her tears and smiles, they were good. Finally, the water stopped glowing and she looked at me.

  “Thank you,” she whispered and I felt the illusion shatter and a strange room come into view. I laid her on the round white cushion in the middle of the white room. As the people stepped through the room began gaining color and I wondered if they were the reason for her rainbow soul.

  “Well, we're back,” said the redhead sitting on the cushion.

  “Yes,” said the supermodel sitting beside the redhead and stretching.

  “We need to keep an eye on the extra mind,” said the bespeckled guy while the black guy sighed

  “Mark, he helped us, cut him a break.”

  “That wasn’t what you were thinking about him before Strength,” said a male wearing a porno shirt.

  “You neither Roy so shut it,” muttered the black-clad guy.

  “Thank you, Jack,” said mini-me.

  “No problem, Maryanne,” said Jack.

  “So you’re Jonah?” asked the supermodel.

  “How is he here?” asked the blue-haired one, flapping her wings.

  “I don’t know but he sure came at the perfect time. Sure he ain’t an illusion too?” asked Roy

  “If he is, he's a good one,” said the redhead shrugging.

  “Jessica is right. Whatever Jonah is, he's here for a good reason,” said Maryanne sitting on the cushion beside Myra. She combed her hair back from her face and smiled sadly.

  “That’s twice we weren’t able to protect her,” said Jack.

  “Who or What are you,” I asked sitting on Myra’s other side. I knew all their names except the supermodel's. They all carried something of Myra in them except Maryanne. She was Myra, a thinner version.

  “I’ll explain,” said Jessica.

  “You go girl,” said the supermodel winking.

  “Thanks, Siren.” She turned to me. “Ok, we are pieces of Myra’s self that have personalities. We control her abilities. Each of us can do something,” she said, twirling some wind in her palm.

  “We’re known as Schizophrenia in your world,” said Mark fixing his glasses.

  My eyes widened. “So you are all her essentially?” I asked, trying to wrap my head around how having nine different people in your head must feel.

  “But don’t you guys say things like kill yourself and stuff? You’re way different than what we know of the disease,” I said.

  “We do on our bad days. We have good days and we have bad days. Since the council began torturing Myra we have changed slightly but we can change back instantly. I don’t think Myra understands this and views us as best friends,” said Jack.

  I nodded. Myra was too trusting sometimes and it got her in trouble. I had taken advantage of that kindness. Myra stirred and opened her eyes to gaze at me.

  “You’re still here,” she said sitting on the cushion.

  I nodded. “I’d rather be here than my cell right now.”

  “Cell?” she asked, one eyebrow raised.

  “Yeah, I kinda got captured by the human alliance while on my way to rescue you,” I said, rubbing my neck.

  She smiled. “You are trying to rescue me?”

  “Yeah! I told you that you were my friend and I don’t leave friends behind no matter how many times they've done the same,” I said.

  She touched my cheek before hugging me.

  “Thanks,” she said.

  No problem,” I whispered hugging back. I missed her hugs. I didn’t know how much until she hugged me.

  “Worry about getting out of your cell,” she said smiling. “ I’ll worry about getting out of mine. It’s time I did what the goddess said to do,” she said.

  I smirked and pulled back tugging on a piece of her hair. “Alright. I’ll get me and the others out. Where do we meet?”

  “Where are you right now?” she asked.

  “In a bunch of sewers acting as an underground base,” I said.

  She snickered. “I think I’ll find you instead,” she said. “Stay where you are.”

  I pouted but nodded, She was right it was better for her to find us.

  “Alright then,” she said taking a deep breath. “I’m ready to face the council again.”

  “I nodded and slowly I began to disappear. When I opened my eyes I was back in my cell.

  “Go get them Myra,” I muttered before slipping back into sleep again.