SILENCE.
I flinched, but held my tongue. What good was arguing about it now… it was done. He was dead. I was dead. What was I doing here?
The other woman spoke, and I glanced her way, trying not to glare.We interfered with the fate of your world, with the lives of mortals. We are no longer worthy of our station and need to pass on.
“Pass on where?”
They all smiled, and I couldn’t help but shudder at the creepy sight.
In time you will know. But we cannot leave until we have trained our next of kin. This residual power we hold now is temporary. It is no longer ours and will slowly pass onto our chosen.
“What does this have to do with me?” I asked again, trying to process what they were saying.
Your fate was manipulated. Changed. A life you should have had was taken from you. You have known great pain and sacrifice. We are offering you to be one of the chosen. A life for a life.
If I had blood, it would have drained from my face. The room spun, and I stumbled backward into a chair that seemed to materialize behind me. Smooth stone, like the ones they were seated in, came into view, and my fingers tightened around the armrests beneath me.
“You want me to be a Fate… a god?” I whispered and began to shake my head. They made a mistake. Why would they choose me?! I was nobody, a villain. I killed so many, caused so much suffering… they were cracked. Insane.
Silence stilled the air, and the three monstrous figures shrunk, appearing human-sized on their thrones in front of where I now sat.
If you accept, you will gain power and knowledge coveted by many. This would not be a mortal life. This gift will be as much a curse as it is a blessing. You will come to know the past, present, and future—the fates and destinies—of countless people across infinite realms.
“And if I decide not to accept,” I said hoarsely, swallowing thickly.
Then you will find peace among the stars and pass on as all others do. Although I do urge you not to make this decision in haste.
Everything was spinning, and I felt nauseous.
I was a monster, not a God.
We are giving you a chance at a fresh start, a new life. One where you can do good. Protect and guide others and ensure the balance between all realms. Your unique experiences will prove helpful in ensuring what happened with Morgana doesn’t happen again. But it is your choice to make.
My gaze slowly lifted toward them, their glowing eyes fixed upon me.My choice.Hadn't I wished for that? For a second chance at life? One where I wasn't the villain. One where I was happy? One where I had control over my own fate, my own choices…
Images and faces flashed through my mind, emerald eyes burning into my soul. I wanted a life with him… with Cynthia. Alife with the friends and family I'd longed to know, with the mate I never truly had… a life that was now lost. Shouldn't I seek peace instead? Try to find him in whatever awaited beyond this. Or would he want me to take this opportunity? To find happiness. To watch over them. His brother. His kingdom. Ensure their safety, that they were cared for. Or was that my own selfishness? Was I tempted by the power offered to me? Did wanting this power, choosing this for myself, make me like her?
The Fates remained silent as I thought, as I processed.
I saw what power did to others, and I didn’t want to be anything likeher, but I also wanted to make sure no one had to endure what we had ever again. My mind was at war with itself and I slowly raised my head toward the Fates, who were all still watching me closely. Their forms continued to shift from young to old to middle-aged.
Do you accept Zara?
“My mate,” I choked out, sitting up straighter. “What about Xavier? Where is he? Where did he go?”
Their glowing eyes all honed in on me. Their appearances shifted once again, making my pulse quicken.
We cannot share another’s fate.
I nearly growled at them. “I need to know. Tell me,” I begged, my voice cracking on the words. How could I possibly make this choice without knowing he was safe, that he wasn't waiting for me out there somewhere among the stars?
Glaring, I ran my hands through my hair but then I realized something. Caelan dipped his chin just a fraction, and hope surged within me. If I agreed, I would become just like them. I'd know what happened to him. I'd be able to talk to him, to see him, just as they're seeing and talking to me now.
It might be a trick, but what else did I have to lose?
“I accept,” I said fiercely, standing from the stone chair.
They nodded as one, and Caelan lifted his palm. I watched as a golden thread appeared in his grasp, spearing straight for me. I held my breath as it wrapped around my body, gritting my teeth as the warm glow sunk beneath my skin. I gasped as the warm thread burned through my veins, and an electrifying spark ignited inside me.
