Rain of Shadows and Endings

by Melissa K. Roehrich

Among those to emerge were six Firsts: Falein, goddess of wisdom and cleverness; Celeste, goddess of the sky and moon; Anala, goddess of day, fire, and the sun; Serafina, goddess of the stars and dreams; Achaz, god of beginnings; and Arius, god of endings.

But gods are fickle beings, and things meant to be forgotten never remain so.

Be what they want you to be now, so you can be who you were meant to be later.

“No, beautiful,” he said, shaking his head. “You look like salvation and temptation all rolled into one.”

“Know that sometimes we must break to be forged into who we were meant to be,” she said, streaks of violet flickering in her eyes like lightning cutting through the flecks of gold. Then she bent and pressed her lips to Tessa’s brow. “You will break, Tessalyn. Make sure you get back up and take what is yours.”

“I want everything you have to give, and then I want more. I want every piece of you— every secret, every tempest raging in those stormy eyes. I want all your fear and all your pain, all your smiles and all your laughter. I want all your mornings and all your nights, all your days and months and years.”

“She had silver hair and silver eyes. More weapons than he could count. She had gifts of shadows but also fire as bright as the stars, and Theon saved her from imminent death when another in all black approached to kill her.”

“In all things there must be balance. Beginnings and Endings. Light and Dark. Fire and Shadows. The sky, the sea, the realms. But when the scales tip, And Chaos rains, Who will fight? And who will fall? For Dark must bow, And Light must rule, But Chaos does not choose. Control the uncontrollable, Or to fury they both lose. Life must give, And Death must take, But Fate requires more. Destiny beckons, And sacrifice demands. Who will be left standing, When Chaos comes to reign?”