Adonis

Chapter 14 - Last time

I reluctantly opened my eyes, afraid of finding myself in that room again, or facing my burning house, or facing Thanatos, with that confused expression. But what I saw when I opened my eyes was a place I had never seen before. It was empty and vast. Like stars in the sky, guarding the infinity of everything that had ever existed. Looking at the sky above me, I was over an infinite river. The swaying of the water lapped at me, moving my body slightly. Contemplating the calm view, I lay there for a while before getting up. Everything I saw continued to spread out to the end of the horizon; I couldn't tell if this place had an end. But right there, in the middle of that vastness, not far from me, I saw two people that I would never, in any life, in any world, be able to forget. They were Rodie and Thanatos. They seemed equally lost, but I noticed a look of relief when they both noticed me.

Something deep inside my heart, deep inside me, told me that this would be the last time I would see them. It was a blessing given by Chizuro, by fate or by the universe. A last chance to say goodbye. I wondered if they knew everything:

"Plumm"

Surprisingly, the first to say something was Thanatos, who walked towards me. Rodie followed him:

"Thanatos.."

And for the first time in a long time I was able to say his name calmly, perhaps even with a bit of longing and bitterness, now that I knew everything that fate had made us go through:

"I.."

I could immediately read it in his eyes. He remembered everything, and regretted it:

"You don't need to." - I said - "There's no reason"

"No." - He replied, his gaze firm - "I'm sorry, for everything. If only I had been able to remember things sooner..."

"That wouldn't change anything, Thanatos" - I smiled slightly - "the moment the cycle started again, you would lose your memories"

"There's no way of knowing-"

"No" - Rodie replied - "I went through the same thing. It's terrible." - She shook her head - "I was only able to receive my memories when everything had already gone down the drain. When you and I had already fought and when Plumm was already in Élenkos. There's nothing we could do."

Thanatos bit his lips in discontent:

"Enough of this, guys" - I said, smiling slightly - "it's finally over. You're free."

"Yeah. What exactly is this place" - Rodie looked around - "I suddenly remembered everything and ended up here."

"I don't have a good feeling" - Thanatos looked at me

"Yes..." - I sighed

"Plumm...?"

"Hmm" - I shook my head - "I don't know if I'm <Plumm> anymore."

They both went quiet. I felt like they realized what was implied. Thanatos sat down in the "sea", Rodie followed him, sitting next to him. I looked at them for a while before also sitting down next to them:

"So?" - Thanatos said - "What are you going to do now?"

"I don't know.." - I laughed - "There are so many things, right? I can finally have freedom in my choices." - I looked at them both - "And so do you.."

"Yes..." - Rodie agreed

"Maybe I'll spend some time thinking about the fact that we won't be able to live a ordinary and forgettable life"

"Haha. Yeah... I know how it is" - I laughed - "I suffered with that for a long time too.."

"Hey, but at least we can choose, you know?" - Rodie said

"Now you can live this ordinary life" - I completed

"but without you..." - Thanatos murmured

"I won't forget you."

"neither will I."

Thanatos seemed exceptionally sad. Maybe because for all this time he remained ignorant of all this, because, for a long time, he was the antagonist of it all:

"Thanatos, you know that you are not to blame for the things you did, right?"

He didn't answer, he remained staring at the waves of the lake right below us:

"I know" - He said, after a while - "I just wish things were different"

"Don't blame yourself."

He looked at me, almost as if he wanted to say "talking is easy":

"yeah" - Thanatos sighed - "I think there's no point in thinking about it now"

"No" - Rodie said with a smile - "in another life, I know we'll just be a trio of random friends."

The three of us looked at each other. A slight smile, pondering how innocent and idiotic that sentence was, but a glimmer of hope too:

"Yes. I think so."

"You don't need to worry, there will always be a piece of me with you and a piece of you with me."

"Are you going to give a hair of yours?" - He laughed

"No, silly." - I laughed - "You got it."

"Yes..." - Rodie sighed, looking up at the sky - "there's no way I can forget you, Plumm."

I smiled. I feel exactly the same. No matter how many years pass, I may have died 20 times, I will never forget the two of them:

"You're right..." - Thanatos looked at me - "it's impossible to forget someone so annoying."

"WHAT? Is that how it is, then?? I say the same!! You're SO ANNOYING that I got trauma!"

"Oh, okay" - He laughed

"I agree" - Rodie said, laughing - "Thanatos is so unbearable that I don't think I'll ever find anyone like him."

"Shut up"

I closed my eyes, just listening to the laughter of the two, while they discussed something trivial. It reminds me of when we were a trio, the 3 best agents of Élenkos. I will miss them a little, but I will never forget them. That's it... isn't it?

I stood up and looked at the two of them:

"I guess this is goodbye..."

They looked at me and stood up too:

"Plumm. I won't forget you." - Thanatos said firmly - "I will make sure to pass your message on to the Leaders very well" - He laughed

"I won't forget you either, Plumm" - Rodie smiled - "everything we went through together made me realize what is really important to me."

"Thank you" - I closed my eyes, smiling - "you guys... taught me how to live, and that gave me the ability to make a choice for myself, beyond the cycles. If it hadn't been for you I would never have been able to wake up. We will always cherish all the moments we spent together, even if all of this is erased. I will not forget."

We hugged each other tightly, I didn't let go, neither did either of them. We stayed there as I felt my body disintegrate. Or maybe it was them disappearing. All I know is that, after all of this, I only saw an immense expanse of white. Nothing else.

And I already felt inside me that <Plumm>, <Shijian Kali> or even <Feng Hua> no longer existed.

I was just the Goddess of Time.