Death of a Mortal #1

Prologue

Peregria sat, observing as always, in the middle of the long table leaden with decadent food and surrounded by her celestial siblings.

Her brother Rathion was busy entertaining with gruesome war stories, while her sister Aeraphine dazzled the room each time she flipped her golden hair over her shoulder.

After a millennium, Peregria, the goddess of curiosity, had grown bored with life in the realm of the gods, for her love and attention were owned by the only realm where mortals lived.

Caelia.

Mortals, to her, were more than just a passing fascination, as was the sentiment of the rest of the gods.

No, to her, their brief lives held more meaning, love, and adventure in the blink of an eye than hers had in her infinite lifetime.

She had seen so many mortals come and go, watching from her realm in the sky, that some days she wished she could join them, if for no other reason than to experience a thrilling life that was gifted with an end.

Her curiosity was something her siblings never understood.

It was another brother, Aeternox, the god of time and prophecy, who broke her out of her thoughts about Caelia.

He stood up from his chair abruptly, knocking it over and causing the room to fall silent. As he spread his arms wide, his eyes glowed white, and he rose above the ground as the siblings watched with intrigue.

The room waited with bated breath as Aeternox hovered motionless. Peregria grew concerned the longer this went on. The occurrence wasn’t uncommon, but it was usually unwelcome news when it did.

It seemed this time would be no different.

“What did you see, brother?” Rathion, god of war, asked when Aeternox returned to the ground, and his eyes faded back to their natural color.

“Caelia.”

Peregria rose, nearly knocking over her own chair, heart racing.

“In flames.”

She balled her fists. “What do you mean, Aeternox? All of Caelia? It’s just going to…burn? Tell us, brother, what causes it?”

Aeternox just shook his head. “There will be a war, but there is One with magnificent and devastating power that will either cause Caelia’s demise or prevent it. I must go write the prophecy.”

With a nod to his siblings, he left the dining hall, leaving Peregria reeling.

She cared little for the fae there, but she couldn’t sit by and let Caelia and all its mortals burn.

But it was strictly forbidden for gods to interfere in other realms.

Shortly after her brother left, and the room’s inhabitants resumed their conversations and stories, Peregria, too, left. None of her siblings shared her concern.

As she rushed through the halls of the pristine white castle, her thoughts warred.

She could give up her divine powers and her infinite life to protect the mortals and maybe live as one of them for a short while—of this last part, she wasn’t sure.

She did not know if banishment meant being erased from existence or a sentence to a mortal life.

Or she could do nothing and watch a people she loved in Caelia burn in due time.

The choice for her was simple, really.

When she arrived in the temple of her father and mother, the mighty Gods of Origin, flames ignited in the sconces lining the entryway.

“Mother,” she said with a nod, acknowledging the presence of the goddess that gave life to her and all her siblings.

The flames flickered and became sporadic, as if the goddess knew why her youngest daughter was there.

The temple was a single, vast chamber where waterfalls poured from the ceiling. A soft wind lifted Peregria’s brown ringlet curls as she walked toward the lone statue at the far end.

“Father,” she repeated in acknowledgment.

She knew they were already furious. But they didn’t exist any longer in this realm.

What could they really do unless she broke their rules?

Their ancient magic could only act then, not before.

The parental gods had left behind their magic to keep their children bound by their rules, while they simply… left—to where, none of them knew.

With a deep breath, Peregria dropped to her knees and bowed her head.

“Mother, Father, I hope you can forgive me one day for what I am about to do. Aeternox is writing a prophecy; he’s seen the demise of Caelia.

A demise that is either caused by or prevented by the One.

I’ve fallen in love with the mortals, and I’ve grown tired of the endless time here.

This is to be my one grand adventure if you’ll allow me to live out my punishment in their realm.

I know it is forbidden to interfere with their world, and so I shall accept my banishment.

But as your daughter, as the goddess of curiosity, you must have known it would be a prison sentence to be confined to this castle, this godly realm, eternally.

Maybe that was the way you made me, for this very reason. So I’m following my heart. To Caelia.”

With one more breath, she rested her palms, then her forehead, on the ground, and to only the ears of the gods, a rumble of power could be heard thrumming through the floor.

“Peregria.” Rathion had followed her into the temple and had clearly heard her prayer to their mother and father. “You cannot do this. Let the mortals be. Their world can be reborn anew. The fae will survive, I’m sure. Do not throw your life away for something so insignificant.”

She rose from the ground and turned to face him, resolve making her stand straighter. “My mind is made up, brother. This One needs me. Because Caelia needs them.”

Acceptance softened Rathion’s gaze, and with a final nod from her brother, the goddess abandoned the divine realm.

She vanished to Caelia—never to be seen in the godly realm again.

Far below, in the heart of Caelia, a child took its first breath.