Chapter 99 - Epilogue - Angel of Darkness

Alice tore through the shadows, slicing through the thick, oppressive darkness. Her movements were fluid, each slow, powerful step propelling her forward at a speed most reapers would struggle to maintain. Alice was not like most reapers—she resolved herself to be different. She trained relentlessly over the years, pushing her body and mind to the fullest. She resolved herself to be more than just another tool used for menial tasks.

As she surged forward, the silhouettes of buildings and trees blurred into faint outlines. Streaks of solid light vanished, and the mountains outside Portland began to rise as craggy peaks silhouetted against a darkened sky. Nestled deep within those mountains lay her destination: an old, abandoned manor, where the goddess of death, Lorelai, had summoned her.

Alice met Lorelai long ago and took pride in the goddess’s particular interest in her. But recently, Lorelai had been acting strangely. She had claimed the abandoned manor as her base and lingered on this plane far longer than even before. Four centuries was young for a reaper, but even Alice knew Lorelai’s visits to the mortal world were typically fleeting—never more than a week. And yet, she had lingered here for months.

Alice did not know why she had been summoned so abruptly. She suspected it had to do with closing her first case as an arbiter, but she would find out soon enough.

As she arrived at her destination, she broke free from the shadows. At high speeds, she had learned it best to do so midair, giving herself time to bleed off momentum before touching solid ground.

So it was, she materializing five feet from the ground and fell in a gentle arc. Her feet landed agilely with a few skip-steps before coming to a stop. With a single finger, she tilted back her hood and looked up, finding herself at the foot of Lorelai’s manor.

It was a foreboding, gothic structure, long forgotten by time and civilization. Vines twisted up its stone walls, and broken windows stared out like many hollow eyes. Were this structure alive, it would be a monster in its own right. The air felt thick with an otherworldly presence that made the hairs on the back of Alice’s neck rise.

As Alice approached the massive doors, they creaked, making her pause. The left door swung open, and standing under the arch was a goddess, but not Lorelai herself. It was Terri, a wolf god whose existence had been confined to Earth. In recent centuries she had come under the service of Lorelai. Alice did not know how that came to be, but she suspected some kind of contract had been made. Perhaps it was related to the hunting and near extinction of wolves on this continent. In that way, Alice could almost relate to Terri. After all, Alice herself was a casualty of humanity’s tendency to annihilate anything they perceive as a threat. For Alice, she was caught up in the storm of the witch hunts; for Terri, the wolves.

Yet this commonality led to no camaraderie between herself and the wolf god. No, Terri’s animosity had always been obvious, perhaps simply due to her hatred of humans. Maybe it was something worse. Whatever the case, Terri’s dislike of her was clear in her gaze—focused, and unnerving.

“Terri,” Alice greeted with a neutral nod.

“You’re late,” the wolf god replied curtly, her yellow eyes gleaming as she stepped aside to allow Alice through the door. Her silver-blue hair fell over her shoulders in thick waves, and her wolf-like ears twitched as if picking up on some distant sound.

Alice moved past her cautiously, though she was keenly aware that Terri followed her closely. The heavy doors creaked shut behind them, sealing the two of them in the manor's cold, grand entrance hall.

“You’re walking with me?” Alice asked.

“Orders,” Terri replied, her short sentences doing little to ease Alice’s nerves. Something was going on. Terri rarely stuck around for more than a wordless nod before continuing on her way.

“Orders?” Alice asked.

“Yes.”

“I don’t exactly need an escort. I know where to find her,” Alice said, shifting her gaze to the wolf god, who offered no response. So, Alice took a jab, hoping to force one. “This seems quite a demotion for you.”

“No demotion. Just orders.”

Alice’s scarred lips curled into a smile. “Didn’t realize you were turning into such a lap dog.”

Terri’s ears flattened as a low growl escaped her throat. The corner of her mouth rose to bear a single fang. “No lap dog.”

Realizing she wouldn’t get anything out of her, Alice gave up. Whatever this was about, she’d find out soon enough. Though, she resolved herself not to show any fear. After all, she had acted fully within her mission of assessing Morrigan, and she’d stick to that defense should anyone, even Lorelai, suggest otherwise.

They continued in silence, accompanied only by the echo of their footsteps, until reaching the door to Lorelai’s chamber. Terri paused, her hand hovering near the handle. She turned to Alice and showed her canines with a threatening smile. "Whatever you did. I hope it was worth it." With those ominous words, Terri opened the door and stepped aside.

Lorelai’s silhouette dominated the far end of the room. The goddess was an imposing figure, nearly seven feet tall, but her lengthy body sat upon a grand throne that dwarfed even her. At first glance, she seemed lifeless, slouched like a corpse abandoned to rot. Her long limbs hung unnaturally, her head tilted forward, hiding her face in the thick shadows that clung to her like a shroud. Her long, black robes flowed over her body like ink, pooling on the stone floor beneath her.

Steeling herself, Alice stepped forward, and for a moment, it wasn’t clear if Lorelai was even conscious. The stillness of the goddess was unnerving, unnatural—a true personification of death itself, not merely a bringer of death but the embodiment of it. She was not a simple earth-bound god like Terri; Lorelai’s existence was so much more.

Suddenly, two burning red eyes flickered to life in the darkness.

The shadows around Lorelai’s face shifted, revealing only the faintest contours of her features as her eyes glowed with the intense, otherworldly light. Slowly, her body began to stir as if pulled back from the void by some unseen force. Her spine straightened, long fingers twitching, and joints snapping as if reanimating from rigor mortis. Unnervingly, her head lifted from its corpse-like slump.

"You’re late, Alice," Lorelai said, her voice soft but chilling.

Alice approached the throne and knelt, bowing her head low in respect. The oppressive presence of the goddess bore down on her, making her feel small, almost insignificant—something she’d rarely felt since being buried alive in a coffin.

“My apologies, Mistress,” Alice began, keeping her voice steady. “I came as soon as my business for the night concluded.”

Lorelai’s fingers drummed slowly on the armrest of her throne, the sound echoing in the large, dark chamber. Alice could feel the weight of every second, her mind racing through the possibilities of what might happen next.

Lorelai’s voice broke the silence, low and cutting. “You’re here now. That’s all that matters.”

Alice exhaled quietly, cautiously raising her head, though careful to keep her gaze low and not meet Lorelai’s eyes directly.

Lorelai tilted slightly forward, her unnaturally tall frame casting elongated shadows across the chamber. "What is your final conclusion on Morrigan Livingston?”

“After devising a test to determine her obedience to her role as a reaper, I’ve concluded that even when faced with a personal desire to change fate, she will not do so.”

"Yet fate has been altered. Pepper Hawthorne still lives. That was not supposed to be."

Alice’s pulse quickened, but she controlled her expression. She had anticipated this. "It is true," she admitted cautiously. "Fate was altered. But it was not Morrigan who interfered, Mistress. It was my own doing."

Lorelai’s burning eyes narrowed, glowing brighter for a brief moment. The silence that followed felt suffocating as Alice braced herself for Lorelai’s response. The anticipation dragged on as Lorelai stood and came toward her. "You knowingly altered fate," Lorelai spoke calmly, though there was a dangerous edge beneath it. "Explain yourself."

Alice hesitated only for a second before responding. "I showed Morrigan my list. I suspected Morrigan would interfere and save Pepper if given that information. Prior to this test I had observed her, noting that her empathy often leads to rash decisions and hesitation in her duties. That made the possibility highly likely.” She chose her words carefully, not wanting to sound defensive. "I orchestrated the situation to push her to the edge, to see if she would break the rules."

"And she didn’t," Lorelai pointed out, her gaze piercing through the shadows.

Alice nodded. "Correct. She did not. Despite everything, she chose not to defy fate. She allowed events to unfold, even though she believed it meant sacrificing her friend’s life. In that regard, she passed the test."

Alice kept her eyes on the ground but felt Lorelai’s statuesque figure upon her, walking past her and then back again… pacing… circling. "Pepper Hawthorne should be dead, and yet she lives. Therefore, fate has been altered. If it was not because of Morrigan, then you are to blame.”

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Alice clenched her jaw but forced herself to remain calm. "Yes, Mistress. It is my fault. I miscalculated. In my attempt to determine Morrigan’s obedience to fate, I inadvertently changed it myself."

Lorelai’s smile was a faint, cold thing, more of a shadow than a true expression of warmth. "How ironic. You set out to test Morrigan, and in the process, you yourself brought upon the outcome that Morrigan would have desired.”

“It is ironic, Mistress,” Alice agreed. “However, I managed to assess the apprentice as I was charged to do and concluded she’s satisfactory in fulfilling her role as a reaper.”

Lorelai suddenly stopped her pacing in front of Alice, towering over her. Alice felt her heart racing with more fear than she’d felt in a long time. She inwardly chastised herself, telling herself to calm down.

"Unpredictably…" Lorelai murmured, repeating the word Alice had used, letting it hang in the air like a blade about to drop. “Alice, you may stand.”

Alice obeyed, raising to her feet. She let her gaze come up to meet Lorelai as the goddess towered over her. Removed from the shadows on the far side of the chamber, torchlight illuminated her face.

Lorelai was beautiful, but not in a way that evoked comfort or any other typical sense attributed to beauty. It was in the impossible perfection of her features. Her skin was unnervingly flawless, a pale hue, not white like a reaper, but it seemed almost translucent under the torchlight, like marble polished to an unnatural sheen. High, sculpted cheekbones gave her face a regal, statuesque quality, while her lips were set in a cold, impassive line.

Her glowing red eyes pierced through anything they gazed upon, holding no warmth of life but the harsh, unyielding force of oblivion. The unnatural langliness of her body made her presence all the more disturbing.

“Now, let's try this again,” Lorelai said smoothly. “It seems you took it upon yourself to tamper with fate. Is that what you call ‘unpredictable,’ Alice?”

Alice felt her muscles tighten as her mind raced for the best response. "It was an honest mistake, Mistress," she began, her voice controlled but measured. "I simply... wanted a sure way to test Morrigan’s obedience to fate. I didn’t anticipate it affecting Pepper’s fate the way it did."

"An honest mistake..." she repeated softly, her tone lingering on the edge of something darker. "Honesty does not excuse recklessness, Alice."

"I understand, Mistress. I’m prepared to accept the consequences of my actions." She felt some relief wash over her. Lorelai was not happy, but she did believe her… or so Alice thought.

A low, dangerous chuckle escaped Lorelai's lips. She reached down slowly, almost lazily, until she grabbed Alice under the chin, forcing her to meet her eyes as her gaze bore into her. "Dear Alice," Lorelai whispered almost soothingly. "If you keep lying to me like this, I’ll have Terri strip the skin off of you… every inch of it, very slowly, then cover you in salt."

Alice’s heart pounded in her chest, and her efforts to keep his face expressionless abruptly failed. She could sense Terri somewhere behind her, watching with eagerness. Her presence made sense now—Terri hated humans, and though Alice was a reaper, she was first a human. Terri would fully enjoy carrying out Lorelai’s threat.

“Don’t just stand there trembling. Speak,” Lorelai ordered. “But be careful what you say. One more lie from you, and I’ll show no mercy.”

"My apologies, Mistress," Alice whispered, voice barely above a breath.

“Do you deny you’ve been lying to me?”

Alice took a breath, quickly weighing her options. If she could convince Lorelai she was being honest, that would be the best path, but whatever confidence she had in her ability to deceive the goddess had been crushed by that direct accusation and the threat that was tied to it. “No, Mistress,” Alice finally said. “It is as you say.”

"You interfered with fate to save Pepper’s life. This was completely intentional. Don’t insult me by pretending otherwise. But your deceit goes back further than that, doesn’t it?” Lorelai squeezed her face as if prompting her to speak.

“Yes, Mistress.”

“So, why did you really wish to be assigned to Morrigan?”

Alice had originally claimed it was because Morrigan was her master’s new apprentice, but this was only a convenient truth. Alice was many things, but she was at least self-aware—she was vengeful, conniving, and prideful. It was, therefore, perfectly believable that she would go through so much effort just to prove a point to Death, considering their falling out. However, she had another reason and Morrigan was only a piece of it.

“I’m sorry,” Alice said. “I-I don’t know what to say. Please forgive me.”

Lorelai leaned down to be closer to her, her voice lowering as if sharing an intimate secret with her. “Let me be clear. I do not care that you interfered with Pepper’s fate. After all, what is one orphaned gazer to the grand design of fate? Hardly a threat, wouldn’t you agree?"

Alice remained silent, waiting for the inevitable follow-up.

"What I want to know," Lorelai continued, her tone dropping to a chilling whisper, "is why."

Alice clenched her jaw, fighting the urge to speak. She didn’t want to say it, but there was no escaping now. She could close her mouth and refuse to answer, but then she would be tortured, and ultimately, she would break. She had no doubts about Lorelai’s ability to force the truth out of her now that the goddess knew there was something to find. So, Alice spoke slowly. "I… had another vision.”

Something almost resembling a smile touched Lorelai’s lips, and her hand fell away from Alice’s chin. As the goddess turned away and walked back to her throne, Alice touched her neck, almost as if to make sure her head was still attached.

“Don’t stop speaking,” Lorelai’s voice suddenly cut through the silence after she resituated herself on her throne. “Tell me of this vision.” She made a gesture with her hand, and Alice looked over her shoulder to see Terri approaching with a bottle of wine. “It's been long since I’ve heard of these visions plaguing you, and it must have been an interesting one to prompt you into such reckless actions.”

Alice’s mind raced, trying to piece together how to respond. The truth is it was all scattered, and it didn’t make much sense to her, but she did know both Morrigan and Pepper were important. “I’m sorry mistress… I… I’m not sure how to begin.”

“Take all the time you need.” Lorelai smiled as Terri finished pouring her wine, but the wolf god did not take her leave afterward. She stood at attention with a cruel gaze in her yellow eyes. Alice was sure Terri’s presence was intentional—a subtle reminder that while this interrogation had become somewhat more conversational, Lorelai’s threat was not off the table.

Alice took a deep breath and began. “I saw Morrigan… though her future is unclear.” She closed her eyes, trying to recall the nightmarish vision that had set her on this path. It was not the first nor the most vivid, but it was the most unsettling. More unsettling than her prediction of the plague that ultimately led to her being labeled a witch and tortured.

"I saw... fire. It wasn’t normal fire—it was black and twisted, swallowing the sky, blotting out the stars. The earth beneath it cracked open like the ground was wounded, and something... something was crawling out."

Lorelai leaned back in her throne, eyes gleaming in the shadows, her hand resting delicately on the stem of her wine glass. She said nothing, allowing Alice to continue.

Alice’s throat tightened. She forced the words out before they could betray her. "There was... this figure. I couldn't see it clearly at first, but then the darkness parted just enough. It had stone teeth—like jagged, gnashing stones where its mouth should be—and its body was... wrong. Twisted, hunched over like it was barely held together. It was dragging itself through the earth, pulling the world down with it. And everywhere it went, the fire followed. I... I know this thing—this stone-toothed demon—is responsible. It’s bringing hell to earth, tearing open the barriers between realms. But it wasn’t alone. There were... others."

Lorelai's lips curled into a dark smile. "Others?"

Alice nodded. "A coven of witches. They were chanting, weaving something powerful, but I don’t know what.”

Alice felt a chill run down her spine at the memory of Morrigan in her vision. She had stood at the center of it all, her eyes wide, red streaks of blood running down her face and through her pale complexion—whether her own blood or someone else's, Alice couldn’t tell. And beside her was Pepper, standing amidst the chaos, a strange light surrounding them both.

“What else?” Lorelai prompted.

“That’s… all that was clear.”

“What about Morrigan?”

Alice stayed silent, her mind racing. The vision was unclear. Nothing about it gave her a sensible path to follow, and Morrigan and Pepper’s involvement was as obscure as anything else. However, there was a feeling in her gut that they needed to be there. Maybe it was the light that surrounded them that made her feel this way. They were the only thing in that chaotic vision that might have resembled hope, but admitting that now could put them directly in Lorelai’s crosshairs.

She sensed Lorelai becoming impatient in waiting for an answer.

“I don’t know… They were there… but…”

"Oh, Alice. You poor girl. So clever, yet too arrogant to understand how powerless you are. Do you know what your vision foretold? Ruin, doom, death. And if the world is unraveling, there is nothing anyone can do to stop it—certainly not you. Whatever clever plans you orchestrate will not make the slightest difference faced against the weight of inevitability—the slow, merciless collapse of all things. Fate does not bargain, it does not yield, and it does not care for your defiance.”

Alice bowed her head, fist clenched. Despite herself, she couldn’t hold back her next words. “I don’t believe that, Mistress.”

Lorelai smiled that cold, distant smile again. "Hope is pointless, Alice. There is only inevitability. You think you, with all your ambition and scheming, can alter the course of the universe?” She leaned forward, the smile on her lips twisting into something darker. “Doom is inevitable. You, Morrigan, Pepper... none of you matter in the grand scheme of things. If the world is to fall, then it will fall, and all your efforts will be nothing more than whispers in the void.”

Alice’s fists clenched tighter at her sides, the sharp pain of her nails digging into her palms grounding her. She kept her head bowed, refusing to let Lorelai see the burning in her eyes.

“Let me offer you guidance," Lorelai continued, her voice suddenly softening, almost soothing. "Let go of your futile resistance, and embrace your place in the grand scheme. Your role as a reaper is simple. Hope for nothing but the conclusion of fate as it stands. Do this, and you may find peace in unburdening yourself.”

Alice swallowed the retort that burned in her throat. Instead, she bowed her head lower in submission, forcing herself to stay calm. She knew pushing Lorelai would only end badly for her. "Thank you for your advice, Mistress. I will... reflect on it."

Lorelai studied her for a moment longer before waving a hand dismissively. “You are dismissed. Go, return to your duties. And remember—fate always wins, no matter how hard you try to fight it.”

Alice bowed once more and turned away from Lorelai’s presence, her movements slow and measured. She didn’t dare show her anger until she was far from Lorelai’s sight. Only when she reached the entrance hall did she finally allow herself a deep breath.

“Still in one piece,” Terri said, appearing in front of her. Her voice was a low growl. “Shame.”

Alice gave her a sharp look but said nothing as she brushed past the wolf goddess. As soon as she marched out the door, she slipped back into the shadows and disappeared into the night.

As Alice tore through the shadows, Lorelai remained in her chamber, staring at her empty wine glass. Eventually, she moved outside to the balcony and stared out over the blackness of night.

All things die. That was inevitable. Mortals, gods, planets, and stars. Everything had its end. The goddess had seen a very different world than this one go through the same cycle.

She looked down at her open hand, her long, unnatural fingers splayed out until she closed a fist. If Alice’s vision was true, then perhaps this world’s death was near.

When it is all over, Lorelai thought, exhaling softly into the void, perhaps I’ll finally get a chance to sleep.

[end of book 2]

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