Death's Reunion

Being the greatest thief on earth came at a heavy cost. I could no longer be in one place for long, I had to look over my shoulder every minute, and no matter how much I wanted to, I could never be with the people who raised me as their own. I wished I could tell them who I truly were, but no one would ever believe the story of my past beyond this mortal life. My friend and colleague, Danny, was the only one I could trust with this information, for he willfully relinquished his former life before I was forced to flee to the mortal realm. However, while he was content with being human, I still desired to reclaim what was stolen from me.

I was lying in bed in a small motel when my phone rang. It was Danny; he was excited.

“Masha, they’ve found it!”

“The Elder Scythe?”

“Yes. They’ll be moving it to the museum tonight.”

I sprung from the bed and immediately noted down my plan. With the First Crown already secured and the Elder Scythe soon to be in my grasp, I was but a step away from my final goal. I struck the museum at midnight and stole the scythe without sounding any alarms; no guards noticed me slip through the shadows. I took the scythe and left for where my parents’ cabin in the woods once stood. We lost it in a fire a decade ago, but I built a bunker deep beneath the premises. Next on my list was the Scroll of Phantoms, but according to Danny’s research, it would be another year before it would be found. I began to yearn for freedom more than ever before.

A year passed by, and the scroll was finally found. Danny asked me if I truly wanted to return to my former life. He deemed being mortal more rewarding because of how fleeting it was. I understood how he felt; no immortal cherished what they never experienced; but I knew I would do better once I regained my powers, knowing what it was truly like to be of a fragile existence.

Once I had acquired the Scroll of Phantoms, I returned to my bunker and grabbed the other two treasures along with my grimoire. I took them to a circular room made of steel walls bearing arcane inscriptions and sigils. Danny called to wish me luck before the ritual began. I wore the First Crown and brandished the Elder Scythe whilst flipping through the pages of my grimoire until I came across the summoning spell I required. I began to chant.

The room was soon filled with howling winds engulfed in a dark mist before one of my fellow immortals appeared before me. She looked around and noticed that I had her trapped where she stood. The woman’s eyes burned with rage as she struggled to move. “You foolish girl! Do you have any idea whom you’ve bound?”

I simply smiled. “I do… Sister.”

Her eyes widened the moment I said those words; she saw the Elder Scythe in my hand and knew her fate was sealed. “W-w-wait! Macha, is that you?” I could see the fear take over her.

“Don’t!” I wouldn’t hear her excuses. “We’re long past the point of words. I will never forgive you for what you did to me—and to Nemain!”

“No, please…” she pleaded.

I severed my sister’s head where she stood and felt both my powers and my immortal life return to me within seconds. My lifelong dream was finally fulfilled. I turned my sister’s remains to ash and left the bunker to see Danny before I left the mortal realm and returned home. When I appeared before him, his face lit up with joy.

“I’m so happy for you,” he said with tears in his eyes. “I hope to see you again, old friend, but not just at my deathbed.”

I chuckled. “Of course, Dagda. I have mortal parents to visit now, too.”

Dagda laughed. “Farewell, Morrigan”

“Farewell.”