Iliana followed the line, moving farther and landing on one more. This one was different, clinging to her line tighter than the rest; almost strangling it.
“What about that one?” she asked, carefully pulling out one hand to point to the thread that practically choked her own.
A silent look passed between the sisters before Lachesis spoke. “That has yet to happen and might not, depending on your choices. More than one hunter wants your death, but only one wants your fire.”
“Helpful,” Iliana said. “So, is that the hunter who wants my fire or the one who wants to kill me? And what does it mean they want my fire? Is that metaphorical, like my soul or spirit, or whatever?”
They didn’t answer. Of course they didn’t.
Atropos sighed. “There is a short prophecy, if you want to hear it.”
“A what now?”
Ignoring her question, Atropos recited:
“Dawn’s embrace is held by five,
If even one should fall, none survive.
The blackened tide will swallow all,
Unless her light withstands the fall.”
After waiting a beat to see if there was more, Iliana asked, “That’s it?”
Atropos gave her a scathing look. “What else did you expect for a human?”
“Maybe just clarity,” Iliana shot back, frustration outweighing any remaining caution. “Dawn’s embrace—is that me or is that someone else?” She bit her lip. “The five…are you talking about five gods? And this blackened tide—is that the curse? Or something worse?”
The Fates traded looks but said nothing.
“And my light,” Iliana pressed. “What light? I’m human. I don’t have any powers. How am I supposed to withstand this fall?”
Silence. They wouldn’t help her understand this. They just dropped the bomb and waited to see what remained after the carnage of their words.
“Dawn,” she said slowly, working through it aloud. “In Greek myth—in your pantheon,” she corrected quickly. “Dawn is Eos, but you’re not talking about her, are you? You’re talking about…a beginning? A new day?”
Clotho’s lips curved into the barest touch of a smile.
Was that a yes, or was she making fun of her?
“Or am I the dawn?” Iliana continued. “And five…five gods are connected to me. Thanatos, Anubis, Hypnos, Hermes…” She trailed off, looking at the fifth thread strangling her own. “Is there a god I haven’t met? Or am I all wrong about that fifth being the one in the prophecy? Am I one of the five?”
Silence. Again.
Iliana gritted her teeth. “‘If even one should fall, none survive.’ You’re saying our fates are bound. That’s what you mean, isn’t it? The five of us: If one dies, we all do.”
“Perhaps,” Lachesis said. “Or perhaps one’s fall triggers a cascade that ends in all your deaths. Or perhaps the loss of one removes the protection that keeps the blackened tide at bay.”
“That’s not helpful!”
“Prophecies rarely are,” Atropos shrugged. “It is about what could be, not what will be. Your choices matter, child. That is why we are warning you.”
If even one should fall, none survive.
The room closed in around Iliana, everything going fuzzy. She wrapped her arms around herself. “I can’t—”
The Fates watched her with uncaring, ancient eyes, offering nothing.
