Mature Decedre

Epilogue

Song: Midas by Skott

The young maiden stood at the edge of a cliff, watching while the barrier that kept her prisoner vanished.

Everything that the people of Phrygia ever hope for came true. Just not in the way that they imagined it would.

No one could have ever guessed that Desdemona would live beyond the night of her eighteenth year. Nor could anyone have surmised that only she would be alive to see the end of the curse. Every person, animal, fauna, and flora on the island of Phrygia was simply no more.

Only gold remained.

Only gold and Desdemona.

The blue goddess joined the empty shell of a woman at the cliff. "You're free now," she said. "You can leave."

Desdemona shook her head. She lifted an arm, stunned by how heavy the limb was in weight. How difficult it was to raise it. Something that was once an easy feat now caused sweat to collect on her brow.

The Midas Curse was consuming her from the inside.

Noticing this Mahakali swore, anger brewing in her gut at the poor sight of the sweet child. She wanted to battle the Greeks for how they ruined her. The vengeful goddess yearned to dismember them like she did the demons whose limbs she wore. Only then would justice prevail.

"Even if this weren't happening, I wouldn't go. I'm a product of Ancient Greece. An outsider ripped from a timeline that doesn't exist beyond these waters." The hollow Desdemona met Mahakali's gaze, expressionless. It was as if she'd been wiped clean like a slate, leaving nothing behind but a blank canvas, devoid of all emotions. "I have no place in the modern world. But I do have a place here. Don't you see?"

Mahakali frowned. "See what?"

A cynical smile graced Desdemona's face. It was a tragedy of itself to see such a twisted expression upon someone that was once so compassionate. Even when the world didn't deserve her kindness, she gave it. But now, there was nothing left to give so she was simply empty.

"I'm the last chain of evidence. The last one to fall and complete the tragedy," she explained. "I can feel it now," she said, pointing at her chest. "The weight of what I took in my first life. I felt it when I killed Aunt Meg last night. I feel it crushing me even now, the price I'm meant to pay."

Mahakali felt her own immortal heart crack at the apathetic voice of Desdemona. She had failed a most loyal servant, Desdemona's father. She couldn't do what she'd set out to do, which was save her from a fate far worse than death. Mahakali bowed her head, bitter and furious in the face of failure.

"You didn't fail," Desdemona said sharply. "I've been liberated, in my own way. I'm free to make my own choices. I can choose my own path."

Mahakali raised her head, meeting the vacant stare of Desdemona. "You choose to end the tragedy here."

"I do."

"How can you be so kind?"

Desdemona scoffed. "It isn't kindness. Not anymore. I simply understand things for what they are now."

"And that is?"

"Apollo said that I was different in this life. He was right. In this life I was loved and I returned that love." A shadow of darkness crowded her fair face. Even as the sun shone upon her the shadow still remained. It was terrifying. "Aunt Meg was the deciding factor. She made all the difference and brought the end of the curse to Phrygia. The Midas Touch began with love, King Midas and Desdemona the First, and so it ended with love."

Desdemona's shoulders trembled with a mocking laughter as she keeled over. She braced herself as she placed her hands on her thighs and laughed. A woozy sickness swarmed her heavy head as the weight of gold traveled upwards. Desdemona took her time laughing until she felt stable enough to stand tall again.

She knew that Mahakali ached to see her so broken. Unbeknownst to them both, there was still a small seedling of kindness left inside her. It was tiny and easily missed, but it was still there. It was the reason why Desdemona laughed instead of falling over and giving in to the pain.

Desdemona wanted to spare Mahakali's heart for as long as she could.

"I'm sorry I called you a monster," she said. "You're probably one of the most persistent goddesses I've ever met. But you're not a monster. You didn't deserve that."

Mahakali's heart warmed. The image of Desdemona's kind father came to mind. This child, this sweet young girl, was more like him than she would ever know. It broke her heart to know that they'd never meet for they were worlds and pantheons apart.

Desdemona raised her face to the sky, closing her eyes as she absorbed the sun's rays. "I won't be made to pay for the wrongdoings of something from a past life. The cycle of violence ends now." She opened her eyes, gaze as hard as ice as she glared into the sun. "I forgive myself. And that's the only forgiveness that I need to move on."

Pride swelled in Mahakali's chest.

Taking a deep breath, Desdemona unclenched her hand and produced the hidden coin. "I know I have no right to ask for a favor but..." She held out the coin and the goddess took it, raising a brow in question. "Place it in my mouth after I'm dead to pay the toll so that I can cross over."

Mahakali stared at the coin, nodding wordlessly. While she was distracted Desdemona murmured her thanks before stepping off the cliff. She closed her eyes as her body slammed into the cold water, opening her mouth to let the liquid in. Desdemona drowned long before the gold solidified her from the inside and out.

She'd spent her entire life trapped by the Midas Touch.

She wasn't about to let it claim her now that she was finally free to choose.

Desdemona died on her own terms the way she wanted to.

Mahakali dived in after a few minutes passed. Silent tears trailed down her cheeks as she retrieved the waterlogged statue. Mahakali was the only one alive now as she walked amongst the golden island of Phrygia. She carried Desdemona with care, weaving in and out of the golden mud houses in search of the right one.

The gold on gold surfaces clinked as Mahakali set her down. She laid in the bed where her mother, Kim Naeul, died. Where her father, Rohan Patel, said goodbye. The same bed where her adoptive mother, Megara, held her tighter than anyone else dared to.

The cursed child with feline red eyes and the Midas Touch was finally home.

Mahakali removed her necklace of blood-red hibiscus flowers, giving it to Desdemona. The coin clattered as it fell into her golden mouth. It was a bitter farewell as Mahakali pressed a kiss to her forehead, departing to report the sad news to Rohan.

Seulgi Patel, Eighty-First reincarnation of Desdemona, could finally rest in peace.

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