All that heartache and agony. The soft moments, too. That had beenherchoice. Wave after wave of memory crested over her.
In an echo of lives past, her hand rose, gentle as her palm brushed against her flat stomach.
Her chin trembled. "Our child?"
Atlas’s eyes squeezed shut, a crease between his dark brows. His voice was a thick rasp, heavy with emotion. "Her Soul lives—in the Stars."
Her hand rose to press upon her mouth. "A girl," she breathed. She could still feel the blade, the way it had been driven into her chest by her hand and another’s, giving her strength. She had never been able to apologize. "Atlas, I’m sorry. For everything. All this time, you have been chasing me?" It was a question and a plea.
"I never stopped, even when you did not feel me—I was there, watching, waiting."
She stared at the water behind him, drawn. But not yet… She still needed to know:
"And them, my… my Soulbonds? What about them, Atlas?"
"They will make their own choice. But know this, whatever you decide, they will still be the same, as will you. For the Soul never changes. There are echoes of past life sensation and memory that will follow you."
She didn’t realize how terrified she’d been, but his words lessened just a bit of her fear—while replacing it with something new. What if they chose differently from her? What if they never reunited?
"The River of Stars may answer you where I cannot."
She swallowed. "Can you answer this, then? One last thing, before we may never see each other again?"
He watched her patiently, unreadable.
So she continued with a simple word, hoping he would know all she was asking. "Why?"
"Earth was always dying. It was never meant to last with the corruption of the Rogues. I merely aligned the pieces to ensure you knew your Soulbonds before that happened. So your Souls would recognize each other. Nothing is ever truly lost." He brushed the back of his hand down the side of her cheek, staringat her with such adoration she felt unworthy. Who was she to be loved by a Celestial? "And certainly not love."
Atlas exhaled lowly, and the glimmering light around him swelled in answer. "It is time." He inclined his head toward the river. "You know what to do," he repeated.
This did feel familiar. Everything about this place did. As if she had been here before. Countless times.
Her feet carried her to the river’s edge, and there she knelt, her gown pooling around her hips and thighs.
She saw her reflection in the dark water, and she gasped as she stared down at herself. Her hand shook as she touched her face. Her hair… It was brown. Her eyes, too. Her skin glowed healthily, and her cheeks flushed rosy pink. Her brown hair fell over her shoulder as she bent down, and she pushed it back, in awe at the shade, the way it felt so right.
Her fingers sank into the damp grass and mud at the riverbank.
If you could go back and do it all over again, would you? If you could relive every heartbreak, every terror, every happy or sad moment. Each birthday, lovemaking, loss, and celebration. What would you do?
These were the thoughts that plagued her as she stared down at the untouched, dark surface of the river.
She blew out a shaky breath, then, before she could understand how she knew exactly what to do or why it made sense, she pressed her face beneath the surface.
And she saw her future, if she so chose it.
When she arose, hair dripping around her, her cheeks were wet with tears and the black water. Her lips trembled with a little smile.
Dazed, she stood and turned to face him once again. Though this time, she was forever changed.
She knew it was silly, but she wondered regardless… "Will I remember any of this?"
He shook his head, then bridged the distance between them, his hand rising to hover before her face. She wanted to lean into it, but kept herself held back. She would be patient.
"What sort of Celestial would I be if I did not meddle just a bit?" Atlas’s voice was fond as he touched her brow, and she felt warmth, then a deep chill, before it settled into nothing.
"What did you just do?"
