Time flickered again, like a heavy breath against a candleflame, and I roared into the abyss, defying it as I stayed with my flesh and blood, the child I loved with the ferocity of the stars themselves. He had a life to live, and I would deliver it to him even if I had to die all over again to secure it, even if my soul was cast to ash and scattered to the farthest reaches of the universe, never to be restored. I would do it for him, as I would do anything for my children.
