Alexandra Sokoloff - Goddess of Fate

Aurora felt she was dying inside. I won’t let her take him , she thought in anguish. He has so much to live for.

She had to make the Eternals see. But how?

In desperation she stepped forward. “Are not mortals allowed to choose their own fate?” she asked, and her voice seemed breathless, but steady.

The Eternals glanced at one another. It was Verdandi who spoke. “Not only allowed, it is always to be so. If a mortal dares, all of the universe must support that choice.”

Aurora lifted her head, straightened her shoulders. “Then I ask that Luke Mars be allowed to choose his fate.”

Val practically exploded beside her. “He’s a man . You don’t even know that he wants to choose his fate...” Lena nudged her and Val fell silent.

Urd frowned, and the Eternals looked around at one another again. The three elegant giantesses leaned forward on their thrones to confer.

Aurora waited in suspended agony. They must let him live, they must...

Finally Verdandi stood and moved forward. Waves of radiance and power flowed from her.

“Mortals must be able to choose their own destinies, if they so dare.” Her luminous eyes looked straight down into Aurora’s, and Aurora felt her breath suspend. “We give you one day, daughter.”

Aurora’s heart lifted, then Verdandi said sternly, “You must unstop Time for him.”

Aurora bowed her head. “I will, Highness.”

“And then you have a day. One earth day, from dawn till dawn. The mortal Luke Mars may choose his own destiny—if he desires. He will make his decision, and all of the cosmos, including you, will abide by it.”

“Yes, Verdandi,” Aurora managed.

“Yes, Verdandi,” Lena murmured, and elbowed Val so that she muttered, “Yes, Verdandi.”

“Go now,” Verdandi said. “Fortune be with you.” And she sat, taking up the spindle once more, and the three Eternal sisters wove their cloth.

Lena put gentle but inexorable hands on Aurora’s and Val’s backs, keeping them safely apart, one on each side of her, as they walked through the hall with their own constantly shifting reflections stretching to infinity around them.

The three sisters stepped out into the sunlight, into the cool and live air beneath the massive tree. The peace of its great presence surrounded them; a soft breeze played with their hair. For a moment none of them could speak.

“It could have been worse,” Lena said finally.

“It’s so unfair,” Val seethed. “Stopping Time. It’s cheating and you both know it. And you saw what she did to the Tapestry.”

“It’s not up to us to decide,” Lena started, trying as usual to unruffle her. But Val was having none of it.

“You always take her side,” she raged. Which was totally wrong, Aurora thought. Lena was more fair than anyone in the Nine Realms, and Val knew it. But before she could say anything, Val turned on her.

“It’s never going to work, anyway. What can you do in a day?” The thought seemed to relax her and she smiled, that smug, entitled smile that had always infuriated Aurora. “He’s mine and he always has been. He’s a warrior—he’ll choose to fight. I’ll see you at dawn.”

Val tossed back her gleaming black hair and flounced off, back toward the guardhouse and the bridge.

Lena watched her, her face troubled. Then she sighed and turned to Aurora, with her soft dress rippling in the wind. “I really do think...”

Aurora shook her head. “Oh, please, Lena, don’t lecture me. I couldn’t let Val take him. Why should he have to fight and die so young? I know it’s not right for him.”

“You mean, she’s not right for him?” Lena suggested gently. Aurora didn’t have to speak; her scarlet cheeks were all her sister needed for confirmation. “And you are? Aurora, he’s a mortal .”

“That never stopped half the gods,” Aurora retorted.

“Aurora,” Lena chided.

“You know it’s true,” Aurora muttered.

“It is true,” Lena admitted, fair as always. “But that kind of thing generally doesn’t end happily. For anyone ,” she added with a slight emphasis. “Does he even know what you are?”

Aurora squirmed. “I tried to tell him,” she said, but her voice didn’t sound convincing even to herself.

“Well, what do you think is going to happen when...” Lena stopped herself. “No, never mind that now. Just tell me what I can do.”

That was Lena; no matter what, her sister was always supportive. Aurora felt a rush of love for her.

Her sister knew the intricacies of the past, and the past was where Aurora needed to go.

She looked out at two swans gliding on the pond, nuzzling each other with long necks. So happy, so peaceful...mated for eternity.

“I’ve been thinking,” she said hopefully. “There is something you can do. I think if I can take Luke back to where it all started to go wrong—I mean, where he started on this path—I think he’ll be able to choose with a clear head.”

“And when was that?” Lena looked suspicious.

“High school,” Aurora admitted.

“Oh, Aurora...” Now Lena’s face was troubled, and Aurora knew that Lena had not forgotten what had happened.

“I know,” Aurora said defensively. “But I’m older now.”

Not that she was much older; the difference between sixteen and twenty-eight didn’t mean much in terms of infinity, but she had been living as a high school girl at the time and it had always amazed Aurora how quickly you could get wrapped up in the emotions of the age you were portraying.

“But it nearly destroyed you,” Lena said gently.

“It will be different this time,” Aurora insisted. “And that’s when it happened, so that’s when it has to be.”

Lena looked across the emerald grass of the field toward the guardhouse, where Val had disappeared in a huff. “You know that...”

“She’ll be there, yes, I know. Lena, I have to.” She looked at her older sister with wide, appealing eyes. “I don’t want him to die.”

Lena sighed. “Remember, it’s his choice.”

“I’ll remember,” Aurora promised.

“Then come,” Lena said, and held out her hand, and they stepped into the wind.

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