I had walked around the smokey plains of the in-between for hours on end, calling their name until my voice was gone.
Finally, after a particularly sleepless period of wandering around, the Fates suddenly appeared.
“Hello. There is no need to shout, we came as quickly as possible.”
I arched an eyebrow.
“I have been calling for weeks now, where have you been that it took you this long to get here?”
The Fates simply shrugged and looked at me expectantly.
“I know why I am still here,” I exclaimed boldly.
“Is that so?” they asked in surprise and sat down on the ground before me.
I explained what Veridus had told me, consciously leaving out that part about meeting him in my dreams. I wasn’t sure that we hadn’t violated some ancient cosmic law by meeting and exchanging information, so I kept that part to myself.
When I had finished with my lecture, the Fates pondered everything they had heard for a while.
“It is true, wordsmith, that your act of love was a force beyond even our control, and your death has disrupted the cosmic balance in ways we didn’t anticipate.”
They remained silent for a while and when I thought they had nothing else to say, they got up.
“Your sacrifice was such an extraordinary act of free will and love that it broke the chains of your preordained destiny. You are right, you are beyond our control in a way that no mortal has ever been before. You won’t be able to return becausewechoose to bring you back.”
It seemed like they weren’t talking to me anymore, but rather muttering under their breath, as if there were multiple voices inside their head, discussing the matter.
“Your sacrifice created a cosmic imbalance that needs to becorrected. Bringing you back violates our laws, but we also recognized that the universe has already begun to change due to your actions. In a way, the universe itself is calling for your return. We have to adapt to this anomaly in the cosmic order.”
I wasn’t sure I understood everything they were saying, but the message was clear: The Fates would not be able to send me back.
They turned to leave and I followed them.
“What does that mean? How do I get back if you can’t send me?”
The Fates didn’t break their stride and kept mumbling under their breath.
Suddenly, they came to a halt and faced me.
“Free choice, wordsmith. Free choice.” And with that, they were gone.
I collapsed to the floor, releasing a frustrated cry.
I wanted to go home to my life, didn’t I?
Why was I still here if I truly wanted to return to my friends and family?
What would Theo do in this situation?
Remain calm.
Analyze the evidence.
Find patterns.
I tried to calm my erratic heartbeat and think logically.
Before I ever knew about the prophecy, my life had never truly been mine. Every step I took was shaped by duty, by expectation, by the unseen pull of Fate dragging me along a path I hadn’t chosen. Even my own power had felt like something I wielded on behalf of others, never for myself.
