“So you truly hope for nothing?” I find myself asking. “Hope is for the living.” The strain in her voice saddens me. My connection with Mara may only be due to the imminent demise she will soon drag me to, but it feels real, nonetheless. Like a companion I’ve searched my whole life for, only to find her in Death. “Then…” I shrug. Shake my head. “I will be your heartbeat.” A wave of emotion crashes against Mara’s solid mask. “What?” “As of right now, I am still living,” I remind her. “So, hope vicariously through me. If it is a heartbeat hope needs, then I will be that for you.”
