Chapter 328: Counteroffer

16th May 2013, Sayre Manor

(Jasmine Sayre POV)

I would get to know Hestia once more, and honestly, even if we take into account how much the both of us have 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."

Before I could tell her my answer, I felt my mind being pulled from my body, and everything turned white. It was blinding, and sort of confusing, and I had to blink for a few seconds to see if I hadn't somehow turned blind or something.

I looked around me, and it was hard to describe the place I was in, except for the color white. The floor was white without even a speck of dust to mar its unnatural color. It was completely even and completely flat, with no natural imperfections, which ironically made it feel unnatural.

The sky was white as well, and there were no shadows or distinguishable features. Everything seemed to blend together into a seamless, infinite expanse of whiteness. I felt a sense of disorientation and emptiness, as if I was lost in a world without any reference points. It was both eerie and calming at the same time, and I couldn't help but wonder what had happened to me and where I was. I would have thought that there was some kind of enchantment making me see only the color white, but when I raised my hands, they looked normal.

And yet, this place felt oddly familiar, like I had been here before. It reminded me eerily of Limbo, but it was something else, something more

"Well, isn't this interesting?"

The familiar voice surprised me greatly. I jumped in fear and turned to confront the being who had taken me away, only to gape at the sight before me. The thing took the shape of a woman, and yet it was just wrong. She looked like someone had taken a drawing of what a human looked like and just given it birth, without any expressions.

The woman was pale white, with her eyes as dark as the night, yet filled with what seemed like galaxies and star systems, that seemed to glow inside. This being was on another level, and I knew it.

I put on a facade of confidence, "Hello, I wouldn't know about interesting, but you are the one who summoned me, I presume."

The woman let out a smile that sent chills down my back, "Oh, do you truly not recognize me, Morrigan? After all, we've known each other for quite some time, haven't we?"

The being released a fraction of its power, but it was enough for me to recognize it instantly. I was intimately familiar with that power, as I served it for what felt like an eternity, "Death." I spoke up with a monotone voice.

The cosmic entity's smile widened, "Yes, indeed."

"You look different."

The moment I spoke these words, I couldn't help but regret them. This was a fucking cosmic entity, not an old friend for the both of us to catch up on.

If the woman was offended, she didn't show it, "Yes, I tend to be dramatic whenever I leave my realm. Everyone fears the end, fears me. But in here, I can take up any form I want. Even the one you're seeing today is formed by your own vision of power and excellence."

"So, this is your realm?" I waved around.

Death snorted, "Of course not. This is more like the entrance hall. Don't worry, you're not allowed in; it's not your time yet, and I don't believe that you'll ever be able to leave it, should you ever enter."

I didn't know what to say to her in response, and thus I stayed silent. I knew that Death was powerful, that she had sway over the other cosmic entities, but I didn't know how powerful she really was. No one did, really. Honestly, the only cosmic entity that I had fought properly was Entropy, and even then, he couldn't even be classified as a proper cosmic entity anymore. Entropy was scary, but Death was just on another level.

After a minute without anyone speaking, I decided to break the silence by asking, "Why did you summon me here?"

The woman raised an eyebrow, "You seriously can't tell?"

No, I could, I just hoped that I was wrong. It wasn't a coincidence that Death would summon me in the exact second, I was going to accept Hestia's offer. My former patron was surprisingly chill most of the time and wasn't really that demanding. Her summoning me meant that something was interfering with whatever it was that she was planning, that Hestia presented an active danger to her ambitions, whatever they may be.

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"You do not want me to accept Hestia's offer."

And that's because I was going to accept. It was just too attractive of a prospect to live without the constant responsibilities I was burdened with, without the countless lives that are on my shoulders. I would taste a brief sense of peace, perhaps even regain my love of Hestia once more, and move on with my life as a Goddess, not a mortal.

The cosmic entity snorted, "Of course I don't want you to accept the offer. You can't tell me you're surprised, especially when you're going off script."

"Off script?" What the hell was she talking about?

"Don't worry, it's just a misunderstanding." Death reassured

Misunderstanding my ass, this was Death, the living embodiment of the concept of the end, the Destroyer of worlds. She did not make mistakes, or at least, she shouldn't. But the implications of this little slip of the tongue made me angry and I started to yell at her, "It's just a big game to you, isn't it? My life is nothing more than a story, than a play that you designed. Tell me then, why shouldn't I just accept the offer just to tell you to fuck off and let me go. Because I'm not your champion anymore, or your little servant, I quit my post the moment I could, and you accepted that."

The woman, surprisingly, wasn't angry at all. In fact, she burst into a peal of laughter. It was without a doubt, the moment I felt the most scared in my entire life, "You think that you're free of me? Oh, child, I've never let go of you. I just let you have a little temper tantrum and quit for a while, but you were always going to return to me. You have no choice in the matter, you are my champion, my creation, and I am not letting you go."

I trembled in fear and anger, "I left you!"

"And I never dismissed you from your post. Oh, sure, I let you go slightly because I pitied you and wanted to give you time to heal. But I never formally dismissed you."

"But I don't have your power," I protested, almost with a pleading tone.

The woman didn't seem to care for it, "I removed most of it, but there's still a small amount hidden in your soul, in your core. We are still connected, whether you like it or not. And I'm not willing to let go of you just yet."

I kneeled down, "Why now? Why the moment I have a true chance at happiness, you come back to haunt me so."

Death gave me a sad smile, "Because you still have your role to play. I have designed your life from the moment you were born with your split soul, until the moment you die. As much as I care for you, your role is important, and I can't just let you abandon it selfishly."

I glared at my former patron, "Selfishly? This is the first time in thousands of years that I can truly think for myself, to prioritize myself instead of becoming this martyr you were shaping me into. As far as I care, if you want to deal with Entropy, you're free to do it on your own. I am accepting Hestia's offer and that's final."

"Is it, now?" the way Death asked me that question made me shiver in fear, "What if I gave you the incentive to listen to my commands? What would you do then?"

This didn't sound good, "What are you talking about?"

"Do you remember our deal, our first one on Atlantis? You promised to serve me as my champion, as my Avatar, in exchange for me saving the remnants of your people, of Atlantis. I even let the Olympians escape my grasp into that little dimension of theirs since they were all that remained of your people."

I nodded, "Yes, and even though Atlantis is dead, I still served you for thousands of years."

The woman's smirk widened, "And yet, by disobeying a direct order from me in accepting Hestia's offer, you would go back on our bargain, which means that I can go back on mine."

"I still don't understand…" I replied.

Death sighed and took a deep breath, "What I am getting at is the fact that should you accept Hestia's offer, I will consider it a betrayal of our agreement and I will slaughter every single remnant of Atlantis, man, woman, child, or even artifact. I will destroy that little dimension you created for them, I will drain them dry of their very essence, and kill every single living thing on Olympus, even your precious Hestia."

I gulped, "You can't"

"You'll find that I can. Don't make deals that you can't back out of, girl. But you were so hopeful for my help. Like it or not, you belong to me, you have always belonged to me, and you are forever destined to belong to me. So, what is it going to be, Morrigan? Are you going to kill off your entire race again or are you going to listen to me for once?"

I honestly didn't know what to do now. I could say without a single shadow of a doubt that Death was not bluffing. She was more than prepared to kill the entirety of Olympus just to punish me for disobeying her. I had thought I was free of her, but that was just her humoring me. I didn't have a choice really. If I disobeyed her, she would destroy Olympus and bring me back here, or maybe even kill me, but if I listened to her, I would give up whatever illusion of freedom I had and continued to fight Entropy.

Honestly, for all that Hestia was barely more than a stranger to me now, she was still a close friend and lover. My fond memories of her wouldn't let me sacrifice her just to make a point, just to defy Death.

Resigned to my fate, I nodded. The cosmic entity cackled in laughter, "That's good to see, girl. Now, I want to see no rebelliousness from you. I want you to keep to your role, keep recruiting, and keep working on your fight against Entropy. Do that, and Hestia would be safe, even if you somehow manage to fail, I can promise you that."

I still glared at the cosmic entity, and she seemed to soften slightly, "Look, Morrigan, do this, and after you've dealt with Entropy, if you succeed, I will let you go. I will not force you to do anything anymore. That is a promise."

I could feel the weight of the promise. The air was electrified, and I could feel that this statement would be enforced if I accept. It didn't change anything, not really, but at least it was a guarantee that I would be free of her after this whole Entropy mess is dealt with. Still, I had no real choice in the matter, and she did pretty much just threaten me into agreeing, "I agree to your terms."

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AN:

For those that think that I am making Morrigan needlessly suffer, this is me setting up Death as an antagonist. It's sort of like making sure that there would be that inevitable confrontation between them, in which Hestia will play a large role in. Honestly, I could have done it better, but trust me, the payoff will be worth it.

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