Chapter 2 - Chapter 2

𝕿𝖍𝖊𝖘𝖘𝖆

They say death grows easier with time.

But this is the forty-ninth time I've felt its breath—cold, final, unchanging.

I thought remembering would be enough. I carried every memory, every wound, every desperate plea from the forty-eight lives before. I thought knowledge was power. I was wrong.

Fate is cruel. Or perhaps, fate is bored.

Either way, I was never meant for joy. I was not woven for happy endings.

I've clawed through centuries, begged gods I no longer believe in, loved people who only loved their reflections in my ruin. In the end, no matter the choices I made, the ending remained the same.

Me. Dying. Alone.

"Thessa Anahera," he said, voice sharp like the blade above me, "Any last words? Make it brief—you're wasting my time."

He once swore eternity to me. He once called me beloved.

I raised my eyes to meet his one last time.

"No rest shall come when night falls. The leaves will decay, your crops will rot, and your young will know the taste of grief before their first words. I curse you and your blood, for casting me into shadow. Let darkness swallow your legacy."

His face twisted. "You cursed witch! What—"

The guillotine sang.

And I fell into the one thing that has never betrayed me:

The silence of the dark.

The promise of forgetting.

The sleep I've chased for lifetimes.

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"Oh, my sweet child… my poor, broken child. How much suffering you've endured for sins that were never yours to bear."

A voice, soft as moonlight, wrapped around me—tender, aching, ancient.

"You've wept enough. You've begged for love, for justice, for recognition. But no more. You are not alone now."

I opened my eyes.

She stood before me—a vision of divinity, radiant and fierce. A goddess. Her presence shimmered like starlight on still water, her touch warm against my face as she cradled it, then drew me into her embrace. For the first time in lifetimes, I felt warmth. I felt seen.

"Oh, my dear child," she whispered, her voice like a vow etched into the cosmos, "This will be the last time your tears fall like this. I swear it. For now… now, they will taste the fire they fed, and they will kneel before the storm they created."

Her gaze burned gold, her smile sharp as a blade dressed in velvet.

"This time, we won't ask for mercy. This time, we write the story.

And in this story, we are the villains."

And then, darkness wrapped around me once again—gentle this time, like velvet rather than void—marking my rebirth.

●◉◎◈◎◉●

When I opened my eyes, my first instinct was to search for a mirror, to catch a glimpse of this life's reflection and guess my new age. But I froze mid-step.

Wait.

I remembered.

Everything.

Not flashes. Not fragments. Everything—all forty-nine lives, their ends, their betrayals. The memories came rushing back instantly, not in pieces like they used to.

"That's because I meddled a little this time. You've got my help now," said a voice, playful and smooth, echoing like honeyed wind.

Startled, I spun around—and there she was.

The goddess.

The one from the dream.

She was lounging on my bed, kicking her legs like a child, rolling over as if she owned the place.

"You're real?" I asked, baffled.

She grinned. "Very real, darling. Well, partially. But yes, I'm here."

"I—wha—?"

She raised a hand. "Questions later. First, you need to eat and change. Then we can talk. Priorities, sweetheart."

"Right—"

"Oh! And make sure you order a large amount of food. I haven't eaten in a century and I'd hate to die again, especially of hunger. Wouldn't that be tragic?" she said dramatically, flopping back into the pillows.

"Of course not…" I muttered, already questioning my sanity.

Still, I obeyed. Something about her presence—bizarre and chaotic as it was—made it easier to go with the flow.

As I changed and placed the food order, I couldn't help but think, Can she hear my thoughts?

'You're invisible to others, aren't you? No one's said anything about a strange woman lounging in my room.'

"I only appear to those I want to see me," she replied smugly, sinking deeper into the bed. "And this mattress? Divine. Where has this been all my life?"

How did I end up with a goddess like this? I thought, rubbing my temples.

But… well, at least she's on my side.

Soon, a knock came.

"My lady, the food is here."

"You may enter."

"Here you are, my lady."

"Thank you. You may leave."

Once the servant closed the door behind him, I turned.

"Goddess—the food's here."

"Perfect!" she chirped. "Let's feast!"

Watching her eat was… oddly comforting and mildly terrifying. She devoured the food like someone starved of life itself.

" Where have you been to eat like that? Sorry!!! That was- "

"You have questions," she said, not even glancing up. "Don't apologize. It's natural. I'm just surprised you're taking this all so well."

"I've seen enough to not be easily shocked anymore."

"Good point. Go on, ask."

"Who are you? And how did you get into this cycle?"

She set down her fork, expression softening. "As for who I am… that's still a mystery to me. My memories are sealed. But I know my name: 𝔇𝔢𝔪𝔢𝔯𝔞. I'm a goddess. A goddess of what? We'll discover that together."

Demera… that name... it feels familiar.

"As for how I got here—it's fuzzy. I was trapped in… a place. Time didn't exist there. But I found a book. Or maybe it found me. And somehow, it led me to you."

She was vague, clearly hiding pieces, but I sensed no malice. Just exhaustion… and something ancient.

"That's why you act the way you do?" I asked gently. "Like someone who hasn't eaten in decades?"

"Centuries, darling," she corrected, grinning. "And yes. Bingo!"

I chuckled. "Do you at least know anything about this world?"

She looked out the window, blinking like the light hurt. "I've been locked away so long, I don't even know what year it is."

"2567," I told her.

She blinked—then gasped.

"Five thousand years?! No wonder everything feels like it's made of magic and regret."

"Pretty much."

"Well, I've read enough during the time I was trapped to get by. Application might be messy, but I'll adapt. Hopefully I won't blow anything up. Accidentally." She winked. "Besides, I'm practically stuck to you now."

I sighed, looking at her dramatically stuffed cheeks.

Turbulence, chaos, divinity—whatever this life brings, at least I won't face it alone.

And maybe, just maybe, this time…

I won't die.