The next resting room didn’t have any side doors. There was just one, plain door straight ahead which opened for them without any touch. They went through and entered another square marble room, but this one was completely empty. When the door closed behind them, a tiny ball of white light appeared in the middle. It grew larger, continuing to expand and morph until it took human shape and suddenly a woman was standing before them.
Beautiful was an understatement. She was tall, slender, with very long straight white hair, and crystal blue eyes. Her light skin was flawless and shimmered softly. A golden diadem, with delicate swirls, rested across her forehead and bore a sun in the center, the symbol of the goddess of healing. She wore a long flowing dress, which matched the color of her eyes, and was embroidered with intricate patterns in gold around the neckline and bottom of the sleeves. Her hands were clasped loosely in front of her and her face was the image of tranquility.
Sera immediately dropped to her knees and bowed her head. “My goddess.”
“Stand up, Sera,” Aryst said, her voice was like the softest caress, serene and beautiful.
Sera obeyed as Aryst looked at each of them in turn, finally stopping on Matt. “Mathias.”
“Yes?” It was barely a whisper.
“Look at me,” she commanded gently.
She was the embodiment of compassion, so much good, so much light. He couldn’t bring himself to look directly at her. “I can’t.”
“Look at me,” she repeated, her tone remaining patient and kind.
He swallowed hard, then took a deep breath. He felt scared and he didn’t know why. He glanced sideways at Sera, but she had her head bowed with her eyes closed, as silent and still as a statue. He forced his head up, it felt like there was a boulder weighing it down. After a long moment, he finally met Aryst’s gaze. Once he looked into her eyes, he couldn’t look away, though it was like looking at the sun—bright, beautiful, painful, too much to bare.
Then he realized what it was that he felt and why. She could see into him. He was completely exposed to her, she knew everything, and the weight that pressed down on him was shame. All of his past came to rest on his shoulders until he felt ready to buckle under the pressure of it.
It seemed like a very long time before she spoke again. “You have been the cause of much suffering on the Mortal Plane.”
“Yes,” he breathed, his eyes starting to sting. He wanted desperately to look away, but couldn’t.
“You now suffer with those memories.” Her eyes were sad now.
“I deserve the pain,” he whispered.
“I am not justice. I do not condemn,” she said, then gave him a small, tender smile. “I am compassion. I heal.” She was silent for a while and tears welled up in his eyes. “I offer to heal you, Mathias. I can erase these painful memories and it will be as though they never happened. The weight you bare will be lifted and you can live your life with a light heart.”
She was offering water to a man dying of thirst. The past was too heavy and at that moment, the pain was so much he physically hurt, he trembled with it. Knowing his desire, the goddess released him from her hold so that he could look away.
Sera lifted her head and met his gaze with her warm, loving eyes. He wasn’t the only one who had to live, day and night, with the pain of his past. He remembered the first time he saw her. He had woken up after almost dying, but he had thought that he hadn’t survived because he thought she was an angel. Her face was the first thing he saw after he lost his birthmark. Then, with her enduring faith and unconditional love, she had given him a new life. She was his angel. The woman who gave him the strength to be the man he now was, a man so different from who he had been only months ago.
“Sera, I love you so much, and I never want to hurt you,” he told her. Her eyes filled with tears of her own. “But I know that I hurt you every day. I know you feel my pain, so it’s your pain too, and I’m so sorry for that. I’m even more sorry that I’m asking you to continue.”
She smiled adoringly at him. “If that is the only price I have to pay to be with you, then I would pay it tenfold.”
She was too good, he had always thought so, and every day he was amazed more by her strength, her devotion and, especially, her love. He gave her a tender smile before slowly turning back to the goddess and forcing himself to look into her eyes again. “Thank you for your offer, but I decline.”
“Why?” she asked, as if she didn’t already know the answer.
“Because knowing the darkness makes the light that much brighter,” he said. “I don’t want to forget that monster in me. Even if my memory is erased, I’ll still be me. Not remembering won’t change the horrible things I’m still capable of doing. I never want to forget, because I never want to go back. I’d rather live with pain and remember, than forget and lose who I am now.”
She nodded her acceptance of this.
Matt took a deep breath. “But… can I ask for something else?”
“Of course.”
“Can you erase Vivyka’s memories of me, take away her pain?”
“Yes,” Aryst answered.
“No!” Vivyka said, her voice choked with emotion.
Matt turned to her. “Why not?”
She stepped closer and looked at him through watery eyes. “Because they aren’t all bad. And because I don’t want to forget what I’ve learned from you.”
He frowned in confusion. “What could you possibly learn from me?”
“That people can change, even against great odds. I understand now that even without Sera you made the first step when you saved Tess. And that it’s you who decides every day to be the good person you are now, though it’s really hard for you.” Her gaze flickered to Sera for a moment and then back. “And… people do deserve forgiveness.” She took another step and raised a hand to his face, cupping his cheek gently and looking into his eyes. “Mathias… I forgive you,” she told him sincerely and slid her arms around him, hugging him. He held her close and they both stood there, crying.
When she finally pulled back, he held her face in his hands and tenderly kissed her forehead. “Thank you,” he whispered.
“You have passed the final test,” Aryst said.
Matt let go of Vivyka as they turned to look at the goddess in confusion.
Aryst smiled. “Hatred helps no one. It is forgiveness that heals. You may come see me now on the Immortal Planes,” she told them, then disappeared. Behind where she had been, the wall opened up and the most beautiful place imaginable came into view. It was bright and pristine. The white ground and buildings all twinkled in the sunshine like a city made of stars.
“The Plane of Light,” Sera said in awe.
“You knew,” Matt realized.
“Yes, she told me as soon as she appeared. But the offer was real,” she assured.
“I’m sorry that you still have to live with my pain.”
She beamed at him. “What you did was beautiful and I only love you more for it,” she told him as she wrapped her arms around his neck and reached up to kiss him. He lifted her and held her as close as he possibly could.
“My angel,” he whispered.
As soon as Matt let go of Sera, Tess tackled him and hugged him tightly. He smiled and held her for a moment. “You’re pretty awesome,” she told him when she stepped back. She nodded to Ayden. “He thinks so too.”
“Can’t prove it,” Ayden said with a smirk.
Matt chuckled. “So are you guys,” he said sincerely. “You’ve both helped me more than you know. So have you,” he added to Vivyka. “A lot.”
Vivyka smiled and wiped away her tears. “You too.”
