Chapter 327: Acceptance

16th May 2013, Sayre Manor

(Jasmine Sayre POV)

"I loved the woman you used to be. But time changes everyone. I am not the same that I used to be, and you are not the same woman I used to love. You might have been able to observe me, all this time, but the fact is that I do not know you, at least not enough to love you. Perhaps if I knew you better, I could have, but we only have so little time left together. Why do you ask?"

The Goddess of the Hearth gave me a sad smile, "You always were a logical one, weren't you? I asked you because I had an offer for you, one that can be affected by your answer."

I perked up, interested, "What is it?"

"I'm offering you a place at my side in Olympus. To ascend with me to Olympus, where you would rule by my side as my Queen. You said it yourself, you're tired of being a pawn in this game of destiny. So, just give it up, and come with me, stop caring about them. You owe them nothing and they do not deserve you. Come with me and live as my wife until run itself runs out."

I froze when I digested what Hestia just revealed. It was just inconceivable, running away, living the last few years of my life in peace before the entire multiverse is destroyed. But wasn't that what I wanted in the end, or at least what I told myself I wanted?

But how would that change anything really? A few years are nothing but a blink of an eye to someone of my age. All I would end up having is what amounts to a moment of reprieve until I burned with the rest of the Olympians when Entropy destroyed the multiverse.

Confused by the fact that Hestia wasn't even trying to save her people, I questioned, "Are you truly giving up on Olympus? Are you accepting the fact that your people will die like the rest of the multiverse and choose to make me that offer for the sake of it?"

The Goddess of the Hearth snorted, "Of course not. Ascended beings that exist outside of the physical dimension are not at risk. Entropy doesn't have access to his full abilities anymore, and all he's planning to do is to spread a fraction of his essence into all physical worlds, killing them all. Olympus will be safe and out of his reach, the same as all the Elder Gods and Demons that still live. Why do you think that gods and demons aren't concerned about what's happening? They are not in danger really. And inevitably, after the Living Tribunal punishes Entropy, new planets will be born, new lifeforms will grow on them, and everything will return to normal. What I am offering you is a way out. Join me on Olympus, outside the reach of Entropy, and live unconcerned with the fate of the multiverse."

"What of humanity? What of the countless lives that are spread out among countless universes? Do we just let them die?"

Hestia shrugged, "What about them? You washed your hands of humanity, you said that yourself many times. What's wrong with letting them die? Everything ends. And the gap left by humanity will be filled by another species, on a new planet, with a new ecosystem."

The Goddess of the Hearth's unconcerned tone at the death of trillions showed me how different Hestia had become. When we were together, she would have gasped and cried at the thought of so many dead. She would have fought tooth and nail to stop that from happening. Her apathy to the situation told me that I wasn't the only one who had lost my humanity, Hestia had as well. Gods were inhuman by nature, and ascended ones while remembering a few things from a mortal perspective, do not retain this semblance of humanity, or mortality. The Hestia before me might simply be a being with the memories of the woman I once loved, but doesn't share any of the qualities that made me love her in the first place.

But damn, that was really tempting. To leave the mortal world, the physical plane, and let the cosmic entities that think themselves too high and mighty to deal with a mess of their own creation, handle the Entropy thing. And why should I care if Entropy succeeds? I would be in another dimension with Hestia and the remnants of Atlantis. I would no longer be a pawn in whatever game the Endless are playing. I guess the balance would be disrupted, but why the fuck should I care? It wouldn't be my responsibility; it shouldn't be up to me to fight Entropy. I have quit my role as Death's avatar, I am no longer a slave to Fate and Time, and I will not be bound.

And yet, the thought of leaving left me with a bad taste in my mouth. I had invested so much in the fight against Entropy. The countless plans, the armies, hell, I even sacrificed the very humanity that I treasured for so long, to fight a being with Endless power. For all of that to be for nothing, it would be disappointing. Honestly, I thought that it would feel more like running away than fighting what Death had planned for me.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Because something made me feel like this was Death's plan all along. The fact that she still has a hold on this universe and yet chose to let me go without even trying to stop me, or even try to convince me, despite the 'cosmic scandal' that it caused, is worrying. She expected me to quit, somehow, she expected the universe to lock down, somehow, and she expected that Entropy would defect as well and that I would end up opposing him. That kind of planning worried me, it was terrifying, and Hestia was genuinely giving me a way out, something that I have craved for so long. The only issue would be if the offer was too good to be true.

Hestia noticed my silence and attributed it to me thinking about her offer. She wasn't wrong, not really. I was seriously thinking about accepting. It was a very attractive offer. The Goddess walking next to me continued, "Look, Medusa, you wouldn't even be a normal Goddess, you would be by my side, ruling Olympus as you should have in the first place. We are the remnants of Atlantis, and you are the uncrowned Queen of Atlantis."

I raised an eyebrow at the blatant attempt at manipulation to get me to accept. Atlantis was always a sore point for me. It was my home, my culture, that I had done my best to honour. Olympus was what remained of this culture, bastardized as it might have been, but I could turn it into a new Atlantis, and make it the paradise it used to be. And yet, the thought didn't feel as thrilling as it would have in my youth. I guess I just accepted that Atlantis is gone, and that trying to revive it would be a mockery, a pale imitation of what it was, not a way to move on forward. I gave Hestia a blank look, showing her that I could see through her futile attempt, "Atlantis is dead, Hestia, and trying to imitate it will only lead to disappointment. What I am more curious about is the fact that you're the Queen of Olympus now. Care to explain?"

Even if she hadn't just revealed it, I would have been able to guess it. Hestia now held an air of authority, like she expected to be obeyed without question, which means that she held a very high position in Olympus. She was such a wallflower when we were together, choosing not to oppose her family, out of loyalty, love, and compassion.

Hestia blushed slightly, "Well, I spent centuries mourning you, watching you become more miserable every day. Until Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades all started sending champions to your doorstep to kill you. They thought that you were just some witch that they could use as a way to challenge their champions, and well, they turned it into some kind of competition. You ended up just leaving Korinthos, our home, and I got really angry. I decided that those three oafs shouldn't be in charge, and I challenged them for the throne. I won obviously, and I've been the Queen of Olympus ever since."

I grinned and bowed mockingly, speaking up with a monotone voice, "Your Majesty!"

Hestia glared at me, "That's not funny. I already get that crap on Olympus, and I don't need it here."

I snorted, "I'm sorry, but I just can't imagine you ordering people around. You were so uncomfortable when the people of Korinthos kept bowing whenever we walked around without disguises."

Again, the Queen of Olympus blushed, "I will admit that there was a learning curve involved. You have no idea how many gods are willing to do anything for a scrap of power that they will not use to do anything. By the powers, there were so many marriage proposals, from men and women, and it was horrible. Some even offered to be my concubines. It was so embarrassing."

I wiggled my eyebrows, "Come on, you can't tell me that you haven't had any stress relief for so long."

Hestia looked down, "I thought about it. But I just couldn't let go of you. I loved you, truly loved you, and you loved me. I couldn't just forget about it. I still watched over you, and getting married, or even taking a lover felt like a betrayal."

I couldn't help but feel guilty about her confession. She had never moved on, while I had. Selene might not have been the perfect wife, but she soothed the hurt that Hestia left when she was gone. Hestia had no one.

Seemingly reading my thoughts, Hestia made sure to reassure me, "Look, I'm not admonishing you in any way. We were separated, and only I could take a look at you, you didn't have the same luxury. I was even happy when I saw you moving on, no matter how much I wished that it was with me."

Not knowing what to say to that, I simply walked towards her and enveloped her in a hug. Hestia hugged me back and we stayed like this for what felt like an eternity. I whispered in her ear, "I missed you so much, Hestia. I cannot express by words how many times I thought about you."

Hestia looked up at me, eyes warm and hopeful. She looked beautiful like this. And honestly, I think I was inclined to agree with her offer. It was a good way out, a great way out even. I would have a small share of happiness in an otherwise miserable life. I would live with the remnants of my people, and teach them some of Atlantis' traditions. I would let go of Selene and the betrayal she caused me. I would get to know Hestia once more, and honestly, even if we take into account how much the both of us changed, we seemed to get along just fine.

The only issue is that I would be dooming the multiverse, that I would be abandoning Wanda, Jean, and Selene to die at the hands of Entropy's madness. I would let Asgard die, once more. Thor, the boy king that had so much potential would not live to realize it, Loki, my hopeful student would never learn to control his madness. Everything I had worked for in my entire life, for thousands of years, would be gone for the fraction of a second. And yet, this regret was overshadowed by the potential freedom that would come with the offer.

I would live in peace, without dealing with cosmic entities. And wasn't that what I wished for the most? Perhaps, for the first time in God knows how long, it's time for me to be selfish, to do something for me. I looked Hestia in the eyes and spoke up, "Hestia. About your offer, I have an answer now."

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