“My wife. She snuck into this court without dying. Will she age eternally? Will she die and become a soul if she stays here?”
“She won’t age. This court isn’t a realm with time passing. It’s simply the After. The space where things come to exist, but not change. Should she wish to age, she could always return to Requiem, but if she wishes to stay, she will… remain. As she is.”
Death’s shoulders relaxed slightly. “Thank you for that.”
“We need to move. The Fates see patterns and possibilities. They’ll know what’s coming if we linger.”
Death nodded, dark hair falling across his brow. “What exactly do you need from them? What change must they make?”
“They have the power to affect change inher,to alter the threads of her fate. The voices, the visions… They could end them with a single adjustment to her thread.” My voice cracked. “If they would simply change her fate, she would be okay. They’ll be furious about this intrusion. They may demand payment, likely that I stay away from her forever. And I will agree. I will do whatever they ask if it means she finds peace.”
Death studied me for a long moment, his gaze measuring. “You truly love her.”
It wasn’t a question, but I answered anyway. “More than existence.”
“Then I’m with you.” He straightened his shoulders, power rippling around him like a cloak. “Paesha matters to me too.”
We moved toward the door, each step deliberate and purposeful. I was already considering how to open the tear, how to navigate the void with Death in tow, when the great doors swung open.
A woman stood there, casually twirling a dagger between her fingers. Her green eyes, sharp and calculating, took us both in with a single glance. A massive hellhound loomed behind her, its shoulders higher than hers, red eyes glowing like embers in the darkness. The beast’s breath came in low growls that vibrated the air.
“Going somewhere interesting?” she asked, her voice deceptively light as the dagger continued its perfect rotation.
Death moved forward, his posture softening. “Easy, Nightmare,” he murmured, leaning in to kiss her briefly. His hand brushed her cheek with surprising tenderness. “There’s an emergency. Paesha needs help.”
Her eyes narrowed, the dagger stilling. “What kind of emergency?”
“The kind that requires immediate action,” I cut in, aware of each second slipping away. “I’m sorry, but we don’t have time?—”
“This is Reverius,” Death said, gesturing toward me. “An old… associate of Paesha’s. And this,” he said to me, “is my wife, Deyanira.”
We’d met, but she didn’t need to know that right now. There was something dangerous in her stillness, in the careful way she assessed me. The hellhound mirrored her, its massive head tilting slightly.
“I don’t have time to explain.”
Deyanira’s fingers tightened around the dagger’s hilt. “Then I’m coming too.”
“You can’t,” I said, perhaps too quickly.
Her eyes flashed. “I don’t recall asking your permission.”
“It’s not about permission,” Death said gently. “Where we’re going, it’s not a place for the living, or me, technically. It’s complicated. I’ll explain everything when I return, I promise.”
For a moment, I thought she might argue further, but something in Death’s expression seemed to reach her. She stepped back, the hellhound moving with her like a shadow.
Her gaze shifted to me. “You’d better bring him back exactly as he is.”
“You have my word,” I replied.
She laughed, a sound without humor. “I have no fucking clue who you are so that doesn’t mean shit to me.”
We moved past her, the hellhound growling low as I passed. I could feel Deyanira’s eyes on my back, calculating and cold.
“We need to move quickly. The tear will only stay open for moments once we’re through. Stay close to me.”
Death nodded, his expression solemn.
After sending a tendril of magic behind me, stealing Deyanira’s memories, I reached out, feeling for the thin places between realms, for the jagged edges where reality could be torn. My power surged, golden threads of creation weaving through my fingers as I tore it open. The void beckoned, dark and infinite. I glanced at Death one last time and together, we stepped through the tear, into darkness that swallowed us whole.
