Chapter 25

I noticed Death staring up too. The golden light that just passed wasn’t just a regular light, it wasn’t a light at all. It was a bird, a Phoenix. With wings of golden red and tail that was so long it spiraled down from the tree tops. The whole sky seemed to be lightened up. It was like something from a dream. The Phoenix covered all the sky. I was staring in awe not noticing when I shifted so close to Death that our shoulders were now brushing together. Suddenly his boney figure that peaked from inside his coat was nothing out of the ordinary compared to this mesmerizing sight in front of me. It was just too glorious to be true, I couldn’t take my eyes off.

Suddenly a lightning-like struck came from the sky, I jumped back from the impact of sound and vibration that it caused. The sky divided into golden red and glowing silver. It was more than just silver... It was the moon’s silver.

Moon goddess appeared in a woman- like silhouette with a flowy cape that was covered in star constellations and gradients that merged into the night sky blue.

The Moon Goddess and Phoenix were fighting for dominance to get on each other’s side. And then they both collided in human-like form floating in the sky. One body but two heads. The one side was Phoenixes with half bird face and body covered in red and gold feathers. The other side was Moon Goddesses with women’s face and body covered in silver moon-like patterns.

“My child,” Moon Goddess said in an echoing voice still in the divided body but she parted a little, taking the majority of the body while talking. She was looking at me with a smile on her lips, it looked beautiful but haunting. Her face wasn’t as human as I expected, it was human, just a little alien-like. Merged with wolf-like features, haunting image..

She reached her hand towards me, slowly but it got to me faster than expected. Her hand looked huge from the sky but as it got closer it was like any regular human hand, she tried to touch my face but Death got in between and pushed me more behind him. This made Moon Goddess flinch back to the sky away from me, like she was scared, but who was she to be scared of? God of all the werewolves, what’s there for her to fear.

“Don’t.” I said to Death in half a whisper. Walking back to where I was, right next to him, like equals, not like I am weak and in need of his protection. Not this time. I didn’t need him to protect me now. I was standing in front of my goddess, the only one who had the right to punish me for every sin.

Phoenix’s side got to be the dominant one now. Even with bird like face it carried warming smile “We protect what’s precious to us because without it we feel like nothing.” His voice sounded old and raspy. It sounded like someone old talking, but it was rather someone wise talking. “Our world changes when the one and only destined one comes, giving us something to lose,” he said giggling in high pitch watching Death.

Was he poking fun at Death?

Goddess took the body and came back in. “You are destined for each other, but it’s your choice to let the prophecy come true.” She said with Phoenix taking next.

I looked at Death but his boney face was hard to read. Were we destined for each other? Did she say that?

“Death has served the world with no reward for his work in never ending loneliness. The gods gifted you your one and only...” Phoenix said and Death looked at me and then back at the sky. “A nymph and werewolf with a pure and golden heart will be the one who guides you out of your loneliness, giving you the destined one you needed to get a long time ago. A new life for you to start with someone meant for you.” Phoenix said and the Moon Goddess took back the body.

“You are a gift my child, a gift for Death to reward his journey through centuries.” She talked to me. “My walkers on earth chose you to be the ones to carry the prophecy,” she said, going back to fighting for dominance in one body.

“What’s the prophecy?” I asked and to my surprise she did answer my question. I didn’t expect her to. What am I to question her ways…

“When the greatest rises from the dead and water peace will be locked between nature and blood thirst.” She said with my heart beating in my chest.

I looked down on my feet taking all the information in. no one said anything so I took my chance “Is Death my mate?” I asked again and this time Death looked at me but it was hard to detect if he was looking in my eyes because his eyes were hollow he didn’t even have a readable expression. How could he when he was all bones and dust.

“Not true.” She smiled sweetly and it was like I could almost feel the warmth it gave. “He is your destined one, you are the ones to choose your future. To choose to continue the prophecy or leave it to be saved by itself.”

They both got back to each of their own bodies swirling in the sky slowly fading away. “This is not goodbye,” they said in unison. “We will be watching you until in another life we meet again,” they said and the sky went back to normal leaving me speechless trying to even out my breath. I let my head look down and it was like my neck was hurting from the position it was for so long.

Looking around myself I realized that that was real. It wasn’t a dream. It seemed so cold now, so mundane.

I looked at Death, he turned away and when he turned back at me he was in his human body. He looked at me but didn’t say anything so I took the chance asking the thing that mattered the most. “What does it mean to be destined ones?” I asked. I needed this answer. I needed to know what we were.

He looked at the ground and in his hand he still held Phoenixes feather, except the glow and color was gone from it. All that was left was dried up skeleton of a feather. Death scrunched it in his hands letting dust fall to the ground. “It means we are not mates… If that’s what you are asking.” and it was exactly what I meant. Even if the Moon Goddess already answered. I needed to hear it from him.

“What about our… “ I didn’t know what to call it and I was scared to continue. I didn’t know what we had. Was it love? Was it called love that I was feeling whenever he was around, or even when he was gone, was that the love that destroys people and makes them do anything for it putting all rationality aside.

“Love?” he asked with no trouble calling it love. I simply nodded. “Being destined means we were originally meant to have platonic love because they have no power over my love,” he explained but it didn’t add up to the way Moon Goddess worked.

“But Moon Goddess has the power over mates, I am a werewolf, she has power over my love,” I tried to understand myself with my heart still in shaking and me looking up at the sky hoping to see them again but the skies were dark with a full moon only left.

“Not in this case,” he said. “She has no power over my love and no one has. That’s why we were made to be destined ones. The feelings that go in between had nothing to do with this. We choose to feel the way we feel.” He said, looking down avoiding my eyes.

“What about the prophecy?” I asked him.

“It is not written in stone yet… it only happens if we do our part....” he explained.

“And that is… “ I silenced the end in confusion but I already understood our part.

“Our child will be the peace bringer,” he said the thing that I didn’t have the guts to tell. I loved Death… more than I planned. But I loved him. And he made his decision clear before this. If he wanted to leave I couldn’t make him stay.

I loved him and I will let him go. I won’t push my love on him. I won’t beg for him to stay. We didn’t need to do the prophecy. The prophecy was an act of fate. We couldn’t force it upon us. But what did I have left knowing that my life will stay the same. I will always bleed for the hurt others cause me, if I ran away I would never settle down.

I was stupid thinking that it could be more than it seemed. Here I could make it on my own. living how I have been living just more alone. Without my parents moulding me to be something else. I wasn’t giving up on my love. I was setting Death free. I was letting him go easy because I loved him.

I looked at Death who was already watching me daydreaming. “You will leave…” I said as a statement but still he felt the need to answer.

“I love you…” he said. “That’s why I will leave. Letting you live your life to the fullest with all the opportunities ahead of you. Giving you the life you deserve. You don’t deserve to be stuck with me in a life where you will be in the need to run away constantly.” He explained.

“Run? Why would it make me run?” I asked. My voice came out more tired than I thought it could.

“All odds are against us being together, you will be the key to the afterlife. And by the time we run they will already know about the prophecy… I need to go.” He said and looked into my eyes like for the very first time.

I nodded, “Okay.” I said with a single tear drop falling. “I am letting you go,” I said. And I could see the pain it caused him, the hurt he was feeling. I could feel it too. “But I want you to know that… you will be the only one I will ever let myself love. Till I die, you will be in my mind.” I said and even his eyes filled with tears and his face showed a look of hurt.

He walked up to me and took my hands in his, he brought them up to his lips and kissed them “Forever and always, I will love for the rest of eternity and even after that I know that you will be with me.” He said and let my hands go leaving me cold. He walked to the place where the forest was the deepest… he was gone and this dream was over… I couldn’t keep standing, I fell to my knees crying… I wanted him to stay, I wanted for him to turn back but he didn’t. I wanted to be mad at him but couldn’t, I felt only a pure form of love towards him. I was letting him go…

I now understood why he left… because love makes people do crazy things to protect each other… he wanted to protect me. But i didn’t want to be protected. Not like this…