Page 245 of Vasmora

My teeth ground at the thought.

Arms behind his back, Deimos circled me. “For millennia, my fire has been used to destroy the vessels she ascends within. After all, it is the will of the superior gods that we remain in the Aethyr. But I chose Zevander to protect you.”

“Do you intend to ascend into his body?” I couldn’t help the curling of my lips when I asked.

“No.” He sighed, coming to a stop in front of me. “Some gods are perilously infatuated with a corporeal existence. I was mortal once.” He shrugged. “I find the world of the living to be … mundane. Besides that, I have no interest in relations with my own daughter.” He held up his charred palm for the violet flame. “I’ve gifted him the power to wield sablefyre and nothing more.”

I cleared my throat, grateful for that. “My mother’s mate … did you kill him?”

“There are few who can withstand my flame. Your mother’s mate was an unfortunate consequence of having been summoned.”

I peered up at the merging of the moons. How perfectly they had come together, forming one unified sphere in the sky. “Am I too late, then?”

The corner of his lips pulled to a smirk. “Morsana’s ruse. To make you lose hope. Give up. The merging of moons has no bearing on what you choose.”

“What I choose? I thought I didn’t have a choice.”

“You’ve always had a choice. And now, you must decide if life is worth the price of death.”

“I don’t understand.”

“The universe requires balance. The gods demand payment.”

Hands clenching to fists, I shook my head. “If you’re asking me to sacrifice Zevander’s life, the answer is no.”

“Morsana chose you as a vessel, therefore, you must honor the goddess. She takes no corporeal form. She chose it. And so must you. As your body now harbors her power, you must serve her. Become Vasmora.”

My chest tightened with the realization that finally dawned on me. “You mean, to live, I would need to become Death itself.”

“Precisely.”

Rubbing my brow, I blew out a shaky breath, nearly stumbling backward. “What if I refuse?”

“There is no refusing, Daughter. Choose to serve her, or you remain here for eternity.”

I glanced around at the blackness beyond the small bit of light given off by the flames. “When I return … do I return as myself?”

“You inhabit the vessel, and when it dies, you return here until the next vessel is born.”

I swallowed a gulp. “Do I die a mortal?”

“Not if you share the blood of an immortal.”

I chewed on his words. Zevander had told me of the blood exchange between mates. “A bond.”

“Yes.”

“Have other vessels before me found immortality this way?”

“You would be the first.” He stared at me for a moment. “What do you choose, Daughter?”

I couldn’t begin to imagine what duty Morsana was bound to as a goddess. If death was misery or mercy for the souls who’d be drawn to me, as she said. I only knew that I wanted to return to the life I’d made with those I loved. More than anything. After another glimpse of the moons, I leveled my gaze. “I choose to live.”

He bowed his head. “Morsana!” he roared, his thunderous voice beating through my chest like a war drum, and I covered my ears as it reverberated around us.

When I uncovered them, I turned to find her standing off to the side, eyes brimming with rage. “What have you done?” Her lips peeled back to a snarl. “You wretched mortal!” With a quickness akin to a flash of light, she shot toward me, claws digging into my throat.

But there was no pain. The piercing dissipated, and her brows came together, her eyes swirling with panic as she raised her hand. Pale skin had begun to turn a translucent shade, her form fading.