A sob finally broke free. I collapsed against him, clutching his shirt, and his arms wrapped around me, drawing us together. I closed my eyes, listening to the beat of his heart against my ear as memories flickered through my head, mingling with what I had just seen. Our first meeting in Kovass. Fighting the abomination on the strider to save him and everyone else. That first kiss under the moonlight in Damassi. Every instance where Raithe had stood between me and danger, protected me with no thought for his own life, and believed in me when I doubted myself.
Reaching up, I placed my palm over his heart, feeling the steady thump against my skin, every beat telling me that he was still alive. His fate was literally in my hands. I bit down a hysterical laugh at the irony of it all, fearing that once I started, I wouldn’t be able to stop.
“Human.”
The lightest touch brushed my knee. Opening my eyes, I saw Meeka standing there, one tiny paw resting on my leg. His bright black eyes were solemn as they peered up at me.
“Meeka is small,” he said quietly. “Small body. Small soul. Small fate. Not like Fateless.”
Horror washed over me as I realized what he was saying. “Meeka... no. Not you, too.”
“Meeka promised to get Fateless to goddess loom.” He satback on his haunches, gazing down at his paws. “But magic is gone now. Meeka cannot help anymore.” His ears flattened as he looked up at me again. “This is something Meeka can do. Not afraid.”
“Curse you both.” My words came out broken. I reached down, placing a hand on Meeka’s head, feeling the soft fur under my fingers. The choice loomed before me, paralyzing and impossible. When I left this room, I would have the power of a goddess. But one of them would not be coming back with me.
I can’t do this, I thought in anguish.How can I choose which one of them has to die? Why am I suddenly the arbiter of their fates?
Life for power. One soul for the blessing of a goddess.
A calm rippled through me, sudden and shocking, as I realized what I had to do.
“Raithe.” Very gently, I pulled back from him, meeting his eyes as I withdrew. “Do you trust me?” I whispered. “Would you stand with me against the Deathless King, even if I wasn’t Fateless?”
“Always.”
The simple, genuine response nearly made my vision fill up again. Closing my eyes, I pressed my forehead to his, feeling his hand against my cheek. “Then I hope you can forgive me for what I’m about to do.”
I rose, turned swiftly away, and walked toward the monster and the choice that would change everything.
The cat creature waited for me beneath the limbs of thetree, silent, eternally patient. The half-ruined face tilted as I approached, blue eyes piercing me.“You have made your decision,Fateless?”
“I have.”
“Then whose soul shall I claim?”
“Neither.” There was no reaction to my statement; the cat creature didn’t move at all but continued to observe me with flat blue eyes. “I will not make this decision,” I went on firmly. “If this is what it takes to claim the blessing of a goddess, I don’t want it. Trading life for power... that’s what the Deathless do. That’s what started this whole unbalanced mess. But even more than that.... it’s not my place to decide anyone’s fate. Big or small. If I unravel their threads because I am Fateless, then so be it. But I will not make the choice to end someone’s life. Not like this.” Raising my chin, I met that ancient, depthless gaze and spoke as clearly as I could. “I will face the Deathless King as I am; no magic, no power, just me. And if I am truly Fateless, maybe it will be enough.” I paused a moment, then shook my head. “It will have to be enough.”
For several heartbeats, the great cat stared at me, unmoving. I stifled the fear coiling through my insides and continued to meet her gaze. I sensed Meeka and Raithe behind me, but I didn’t dare glance back at them. My stomach twisted, and I wondered what the great cat was weighing, deciding. What Raithe was thinking of me at this very moment.
The great cat rose, flaring her wings with a snap. Despite my resolve, I couldn’t help but flinch as she took a step toward me, her eyes blazing with blue fire.
“That...”She loomed over me, wings fully flared and gaze terrifying.“Was the correct decision.
“No mortal deserves the power of a goddess,” she continued, as I nearly collapsed to the sand in relief.“No mortal should be the arbiter of another’s fate. Those who try to claim this power for themselves, with no thought to those around them, would only be corrupted by it. You chose to preserve the lives of your companions rather than cutting them from the Weave, thus you are worthy to take on this responsibility. But beware,Fateless. The loom will truly grant you the power to alter the fate of every living soul you see. Remember that every thread is connected, in some way, to the rest of the threads in the Tapestry. Changing one will alter the whole in ways you cannot imagine.”
I trembled, as the weight of what was being offered threatened to crush me. But I took a deep, steadying breath and looked up, meeting the gaze of a goddess. “I understand.”
“Then may your decisions be wise,Fateless.”The avatar of Maederyss sat back once more, folding her wings behind her.“And may your choices change the Weave for the better.”
A shudder racked the great cat’s body. Through the rents in her fur and flesh, I saw the glimmering strands start to withdraw, sliding back as they returned to the cocoons wrapped around the tree. The light in the piercing blue eyes dimmed, and the flesh of the cat creature withered, shriveling away like a hundred years were passing in a blink, until nothing remained but bones. I staggered as the skeleton of the once great feline collapsed with a dusty rattle, feathers spiraling lazily through the air, and silence fell over the chamber once more.
I took a step back and felt strong arms catch me, making my heart leap. Turning, I flung myself into Raithe, who held me close. Leaning into him, I closed my eyes, and we stood like that, our hearts beating together. The clenched fist that had been squeezing my heart loosened, relief spreading outward until it engulfed me. He was alive. We were all alive, and I had passed. Somehow, I had solved the avatar’s impossible riddle and made the choice that mattered.
A rustling sound filled the air. Pulling back from Raithe, I looked up to see that the threads wrapped around the tree were moving. The cocoons were unraveling, uncoiling, the strands growing shorter, as if being drawn back into the tree.
Meeka stood tall on his hind legs, ears pricked, twitching this way and that. “Meeka senses something,” he said. “Feels like magic.”
Raithe looked up as well; his brow furrowed slightly, as if he could hear the faint hissing of the threads around us, but it was obvious he didn’t see them. “What is happening, Sparrow?”
