Paragon

⊰❉⊱ 83 ⊰❉⊱

It had been a long time since I could relax amongst company like this. Let alone company that could sip a glass full of rich red lifeblood as she did without a flinch... I was always so ashamed of having to sustain myself unless I could take it from a truly undeserving mortal. The only time I did not care was when I could not control myself at all... A new blooded immortal.

Selena sipped from a glass with one leg hooked over her armchair. 

"You hunted mortals of a morally grey nature?" She mused, swirling her glass as she appraised me over the fireplace. 

I chuckled.

"Not hard to find in London, I must admit." I answered, nudging at my own glass on the small circular table near my armchair. 

"What were their crimes, immortal?" She uttered with intent.

I sobered at this and stopped fidgeting with the glass.

"Ones that attack the defenceless. Ones that take without care for the collateral..." I paused and considered how similar that was to immortal trends, then continued all the same. "–Ones that take and give nothing back." I finished flatly. 

"And that's the reason you do it." She answered in sureness.

I took a sip and felt the immortality strengthen every inch on me. Then I met her gaze.

"I don't want to be a monster." I murmured. 

The look in her eyes told me that she had already expected that answer. That she knew me beyond the few conversations we had shared. 

"Do you believe in fate, Fletcher?" She answered, suddenly.

I frowned. "I suppose you'd need to add context."

She smirked.

"Alright, energy then..." She mused.

"You've lost me." I admitted, setting the glass down and leaning back into the winged armchair. I watched the flames dance a moment before meeting her blue-gold irises that were intent on my every reaction. 

She set her own glass down and leant forward onto her forearms.

"Energy." She repeated, "–The positive and negative transactions uttered by us every single moment." She murmured, animated in a way that I had not seen before. It was a flame of passion that drove her words–ones that I knew she believed. She took a moment and turned her intense gaze into the flames of the fireplace. Her thoughts were of a different time, I was sure of that now.

"You believe this shifts fate?" I asked, carefully.

A soft smile took hold of her as she slowly met my eyes.

"We project positive and negative energy into the universe all the time. If only one stops and observes it... We may be able to shift our fates."

"You speak of it as if it drives our luck–"

"Not luck, Fletcher. Fate." She sighed, drawing the glass up to her lips again. I frowned watching her as she did.

"Surely you can't think good or bad events occur based on our own deeds... Selena, we make our own fortunes." I returned, watching her raise an eyebrow to me and smile wordlessly. It made me uneasy despite it all.

"There are so many unexplained aspects of physics, the wider dynamics of time and space–hell, they cannot even agree on the laws of the universe and you really think you should be bound by luck? Come, immortal. You are past your first century." She drawled, circling her glass in her hand.

I snorted in surprise and considered her words.

"You suggest I should be thinking of alternate realities?"

"No. Just consider this. Your input into this plane of reality, directly draws a reaction." She held my gaze intensely once more, as if willing me to understand it. "–I'm asking you to consider that both your positive and negative contributions vibrate–they react with reality itself and cause mirroring effects in our future." She finished, watching my face as I reflected nothing but skepticism. 

"And what was it you did to cause your fate, Selena?" I answered slowly, "–because I think I can see where you're going with this."

"I'm telling you to be vigilant, immortal." She answered, a little too fast.

"You believe you caused it." I answered simply, not having to clarify which part of her fate haunted her most. Because I knew from today that it was losing her mortal that drove her to tell me this at all. 

"The things I did–" She broke off, clenching her hands into fists. "–the negative vibrations I sent into this universe still echo through time and only continue to do so."

"Selena, that is no way to live. The past can never be changed. Only your future–"

"Your future." She interrupted quickly. "–Your future, Fletcher. Mine is sealed, yours is still attainable." She muttered, leaning back into her chair and only leaving me with more questions.

"Believe it or not, Elder." I drawled, gaining her attention. "–You still have a life worthy of living. Perhaps even one you'll enjoy, if you allow it."

Despite all the weight of her memories, the crushing feelings she set upon herself of failure in the past... My words cut through to her. She didn't smile or laugh but I could see it reach her eyes. She clearly wasn't used to being challenged in such a way, so she stood abruptly and pretended to concern herself with something as unimportant as time.

I chuckled and she glanced back at me finding the humour in it too.

"It's late."

"That, it is." I agreed, rising from her chair.

She was a confusing being that was for sure. One weighted firmly in the grip of regret–but for something she never could have changed. I had seen a World War and there was nothing one being could do to shift its inevitable crawl towards chaos.

"Selena." I stated, gaining her attention instantly from the depth of her thoughts. "You're far too hard on yourself. I hope you know that." I finished, offering her my hand.

She stared at it for a moment before clasping it.

"Perhaps. But one can never be too careful." She murmured, with a shrug and the return of that mischievous smirk. At least one part of her still surfaced.

"I suppose we're allies then?" I answered, lowering my hand and pocketing it.

She chuckled and mirrored my pose.

"Break into my house again and I'll show you how behind you are in combat, immortal." She said with dark promise. Then smirked wider and nodded to the door behind me. "Go. Spend some time with your mortal before she starts to think it is immortals you favour your time with." She finished with a wink.

I rolled my eyes and returned her smirk.

"Quinn is a force to be reckoned with, not even an immortal could threaten her." I stated.

Selena only seemed to enjoy the answer more and returned to her chair to watch the remains of the fire burn. 

"Let me know when you finally decide to choose your bloodline." She uttered, gazing into the embers.

With that I left her. There were no more words to be uttered tonight. The future, the past, it mattered not–but I think Selena needed to hear that more than any... She was plagued by it. But how could I blame her? If I had lost Quinn in such a way I would want any justification I could seek... But Selena was no fool. Perhaps there was merit to it all. If it were the case, I was hardly innocent in the realm of negative vibrations. 

All immortals were guilty of it.

Whether any of us were worthy of an ending that didn't paint the world red... that was up to a fate out of our hands–or maybe, just maybe... directly in our hands.

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