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Elowen lay in a bed, her breaths shallow, her skin pallid, a soft smile on her face. We’d never been able to control what the gate chose to show us, and so, this was the first time we’d seen the Syndicate house in twenty years. It felt familiar to me, but that was Orin’s home.
“I can stay here,” I whispered.
“No. You’re coming. Let’s just… wait a minute.”
Every face circling the bed was sad. I searched the features of the strangers, digging through my memories for anything that might be familiar. Thea’s red hair was simple to find, and though she’d aged beautifully, it was clear the world had not been kind to her. Scars marked the hands that held Elowen’s, and a permanent flush graced her cheeks. Beside her, though, stood a stunning woman with tears so large, they might’ve drowned the room had they been able. She seemed older than she should have been. Perhaps also poisoned by the world that never had a heart for a child. It wasn’t the tears that drew me to her, though, nor the curly hair that seemed far tamer than my memories, but it was those stunning blue eyes next to her olive skin.
“Quilly,” Orin said, with a smile.
There were others, of course. People Orin might’ve recognized and some neither of us had known. But their sadness was palpable, even across realms. To them, a matriarch would fall today, and they would never see her again. But the concept of death had changed so much for him and me over these years. No longer a deep, soul-shattering severance of reality, but more of an awakening, just a piece of a soul’s journey, onward or renewed, and that was all. Death was merely a slot in an endless cycle of life until one decided to step off the ride and live an eternity in the ether or here in this court.
One of the strangers, whose back was to us, took the hand of another. She swayed, inspiring the next person to do the same, and down the line, as a low, soft sound blossomed into a song. She was singing. The most beautiful sound as she inspired peace in a room full of mourning people. She dropped the hand of the closest stranger, circling the others to pull Quill, who sobbed and sobbed, into her arms. Still, she sang and moved, though we were frozen in place. Not because of her song, nor the way Quill remained still in her grasp, but because when she turned and finished her song, the finale of her requiem carrying into our own hearts, one blue and one green eye had shone through her tears. Paesha.
My heart immediately ached with pride. “She did it. She made it back,” I whispered.
Orin released a long and steady breath. “Let’s just hope she truly finds a version of happiness down there because I don’t see Ezra, and that means he abandoned her, despite his power.”
“We run on hope, Husband. Are you ready to go get your mother?”
“I hate to take her from them, but I’m ready.”
Stepping past the threshold, the familiar chill brought me comfort. The promise of family.
It was nighttime when we appeared in Elowen’s room. Only Thea remained at her side. And when we nudged her, hand in hand, she gasped, throwing herself into Orin’s waiting arms and then into mine. That bit of cheer was short-lived, though, as she realized what it meant.
“You’re Death now? Truly?”
Orin nodded.
“I guess it’s wrong of me to be sad when I’m just returning your mother to you,” she cried. “But she’s been a mother to me, too.”
“Of course, she has.” Orin wiped away her tears. “She’ll be there waiting when it’s your time. We all will.”
“And we’ll throw the biggest party you’ve ever seen. But live your life, Thea. Find happiness here that’s just for you. Be a little selfish, okay?”
“Selfish. Got it.” She swiped another tear away, looking down at Elowen. “You’ve always been the glue. I can put things together, but you’ve always known how to bring people together, and I never took a second to tell you thank you for building a family around me. So, thank you.”
But Elowen didn’t answer. Her spirit had already left her body. Thea couldn’t see her soul standing behind her; she couldn’t feel Elowen’s hand rest on her shoulder, nor hear her words. “Goodbye, my beautiful girl.”
With that, she stepped away, and into Orin’s waiting arms. We walked back through the gate before he spoke. “Hello, Mother.”
She pulled him close, studying his face, smoothing her hands over his strong jawline, and running her fingers through his hair as if trying to remember every detail of him. “You haven’t changed a bit.”
“Immortality is eternal.”
“I suppose it is.”
“You birthed a god, Elowen. Just don’t remind him of that too often. He gets a big head, and it takes days to shrink small enough to fit into the castle.”
“Hello, dear,” she said, finally turning to hug me. “I hoped I would see you again.”
“I promised I would save him, didn’t I?”
She patted the top of my hand. “You sure did.”
“Mother,” Orin said quietly. “You don’t have to stay here. You can reincarnate or vanish into the ether and simply… end. You have a choice. All souls do.”
“Of course, I’m staying,” she said, as if it were the easiest choice in the world. “I’ve waited twenty years to be with you, son. I’m not leaving now.”
