Fog was all around, and the Goddess felt nothing. She stood alone, but nothing was visible.
"Where am I?"
She tried to walk, searching blindly with her hands outstretched.
Suddenly, a voice echoed.
"Asiolla. Asiolla."
She stopped and listened. It was something new. Everything she had experienced until now was a fragmented mess, like shards of broken memories.
A voice. It was soothing to her ears.
"Asiolla..."
The fog began to dissipate slowly, and she found herself standing in the middle of a forest. Tall, ancient trees surrounded her.
"Where am I again?"
Jumping from one time to another, dimension to dimension, body to body?
"Why do I have to endure this experience? Suffering, loss, survival, instinct..."
"What else do I need to see and feel?"
She turned and saw a wooden cottage behind her. The large brown doors were open, and she felt an irresistible urge to go inside.
She stepped into the cottage and saw a small room with a large wooden table and four chairs. To the right was a stone fireplace, where something was cooking in an iron pot.
She looked down and noticed she was wearing a mix of green and brown colors, a long skirt that reached her feet.
She touched her head and found long, curly brown hairs.
"What happened?"
She explored the room next door.
A small bed and little else. Lots of dried herbs, dried mushrooms, and a few unrecognizable items.
Confused, she returned to the fireplace and looked into the pot.
Hot soup bubbled inside, and instinctively, she grabbed the handle and moved it away from the fire.
She gathered her courage and tried it.
"Good. Not bad."
She sat down and began to eat. Afterward, she waited... and waited...
Nothing happened. The forest was silent, save for the occasional bird and the wind rustling through the trees.
She went outside and explored the forest, finding only mushrooms and plants.
Days turned into weeks.
Loneliness began to creep in again, but because she remembered her recent experiences, this loneliness felt peaceful.
After many weeks, perhaps even months, she saw someone walking towards the hill.
"What is that? Who?"
She watched the figure approach, and soon, she recognized a small man.
He had dark hair and simple attire: a light brown shirt and dark brown pants. He came closer until he stood before her.
In his hands, he held a basket full of various foods.
"Asiola. I am back, sister."
She froze.
"Sister? Asiola?" That was the name she had heard before.
He studied her closely, and the silence stretched.
"I brought you some food again, as I usually do a few times a year. Why are you standing here on top of this small hill?"
He walked towards her cottage, and she hurried after him.
"No need to carry it to the cottage. I'll do it myself." She grabbed the basket from his hands.
He looked at her. "I am sorry we had to leave you here. Living alone will do things to a person. But having you in the village would be bad. We had to hide you up here."
"Let's go gather some mushrooms together, like old times, then I'll return."
In silence, they took an empty basket from in front of the cottage and walked into the forest.
Lush moss and greenery covered the forest in this season, and birds sang. Little sunlight penetrated the thick canopy of leaves.
They walked and picked large brown mushrooms, which grew in abundance. Soon, the baskets were full, and they stopped.
He turned and looked at her again. "I'm going now."
She nodded and watched him leave.
She didn't remember who he was or who she was now. But she felt he was family. Perhaps some feelings lingered within her.
She turned and went back to the cottage.
"What now? How long will I stay here?"
Goddess, now in the body of Asiola, wandered the forest around the cottage, and a few more months passed. She knew all the trees, birds, and plants around her. Few animals ventured near. It was strange that she was alone, without a sound from any larger creature than birds.
Then, one day, while picking mushrooms on the green-covered forest floor, she heard voices—loud voices and screams. She looked towards the noise and, down the path her brother usually took, she saw…
From the bushes, her brother jumped out, running for his life. A horde of beings, similar to him but with a few bearing horns, chased him. Her brother ran, but they caught him and pushed him down the hill. She screamed for her brother, her only remaining connection.
The horde, their faces contorted with anger, turned towards her. She fled, running to her cottage to hide, crying for what she had witnessed. "Why?" she wondered. "Is being alive so harsh? What are those people?"
The noises grew louder until they reached the cottage. The door was broken down, and amidst the chaos, they seized her and dragged her down the path. She didn't understand their anger or their attack.
After some time, they arrived at a village. The air was polluted, and no birds sang. Brown, dirty houses lined the road, paved with stone pieces, and people stood along the edges.
But were they people? Why did some have horns?!
They pushed her onto the road, and they all stared at her with ugly looks. Did they judge her? What was wrong? No one spoke a word. Someone pushed her forward, and she stumbled.
She walked down the road. At the end, she found a larger brown building, its base made of hard stone, its upper part wooden. The crowd grew noisy, speaking unintelligible words.
They pushed her toward a large door leading to the building's basement. She descended the stairs, fear gripping her. "Did all beings feel fear?" she wondered.
The basement opened into a large room with red-brown walls, lit by candles. From a cave-like section, a shadow emerged. A giant, demon-like creature crawled out, staring at her. It had a large body, red skin, and bull horns.
A demon!
Fear consumed her. Her body froze and her hands began to tremble. Cold sweat beaded on her forehead.
The demon grabbed her. In her pain, she thought, "Is this why I was hidden in the forest? Is life so harsh?"
Fog enveloped her, and a voice echoed. She fell through the clouds. Instead of flying, she plummeted.
The pain of experiences made her want to give up.
Suddenly, she landed on the ground. She opened her eyes. Behind her was fog, and before her, a deep abyss.
She threw herself into the abyss, but an energy pulled her back.
She was back on the edge.
She sat on the edge of the abyss, and a man in a blue robe appeared.
"It is time to choose," he said. "Fall deeper or stay and meditate. All we experience is a lesson, and lessons build our growth."
Goddess chose to sit, closed her eyes, and breathed, letting the fresh air and silence clear her mind.