The darkness welcomed her again—
a vast, hollow space with no ceiling, no floor, no breath.
Alex hovered in it like a dying ember, her newest death still echoing through her bones.
A soft, velvety voice curled around her mind.
Morrivayne:
"Back so soon, little spark?
Your suffering is becoming… predictable."
Alex didn't flinch.
Not anymore.
Alex:
"Good. Then you know why I'm here."
A beat of silence—then soft laughter, sharp enough to cut.
Morrivayne:
"What could you possibly want from me?
You have nothing to offer in return.
You are a soul I'm waiting to break… nothing more."
Alex let out a breath, steady and cold.
Alex:
"Oh, really?
You've been inside me for lifetimes now.
If you were going to break me, you would have done it already."
Morrivayne's presence stilled—curious.
Alex:
"And let me guess… you're waiting.
Waiting for the moment I finally shatter so you can devour what's left of my soul."
A low, amused hum vibrated through the void.
Morrivayne:
"I do enjoy how perceptive you've become."
Alex smiled, humorless.
Alex:
"But here's the problem, Morrivayne.
There's nothing left that can destroy me.
I've died every way imaginable.
Pain doesn't scare me.
Death doesn't scare me.
And waiting for me to crumble?"
She raised her head defiantly.
"You will be waiting a very long time."
The void trembled—Morrivayne did not laugh this time.
Alex:
"You float inside me like a parasite that lost its body ages ago.
You're weak, Morrivayne.
If you try to escape me now, you'll dissolve the moment you leave my soul."
A sharp, cold silence fell.
And for the first time, Morrivayne didn't answer.
Alex:
"So let me make you an offer.
A real one."
Morrivayne's voice returned—quiet, dangerous.
Morrivayne:
"…Speak."
Alex:
"I want your protection in my next life.
Just enough to keep me alive until I become strong on my own.
Strong enough to never die early again."
A flicker of dark amusement rippled through the void.
Morrivayne:
"Protection? From me?
And what do you offer in exchange, fragile little soul?"
Alex's voice sharpened into truth.
Alex:
"You get exactly what you want.
A powerful host.
A perfect vessel…
once I grow strong enough."
A slow, delighted laugh spilled through the darkness, elegant and cruel.
Morrivayne:
"Ah… now we speak honestly."
Alex continued.
Alex:
"And when I reach that strength—
I will kill that goddess.
Not for you…
but for myself."
The void pulsed, as if Morrivayne leaned closer—
a serpent coiling around a willing wrist.
Morrivayne:
"Very well, Alex.
For the first time in centuries…
I accept a bargain."
Alex:
"Good. Then keep me alive."
Morrivayne:
"And you… will feed me power."
A pact sealed in silence.
A shared, twisted goal binding them both.
Then the darkness cracked—
the next life pulling her in.