●DEATH●
Everything hurt. He didn't want to move, he didn't want to speak, he didn't want to breathe. Every little movement caused tendrils of pain to shoot all over his body, feeling like hot sparks racing through every nerve. Death groaned. He was so tired of being so helpless, of having to rely on others. If he was being completely honest with himself, he didn't mind being coddled by Life, but he would much rather have his powers back than stay neutralized forever.
"Death, are you okay?" Life asked when he moaned again.
He tried opening his mouth to speak, but doing that made everything hurt more. Wincing, he closed his mouth.
Life saw the movement and the wince, and her expression grew more concerned. "Death, how much does it hurt?"
Death knew he couldn't talk, so he grunted and shrugged. Even that little movement hurt, and he clenched his teeth to stop from crying out. Life looked like she was going to cry, tears welling in her eyes as she looked at him with what could only be described as guilt.
"I'm so sorry," she sobbed as the tears began falling freely. "I should be the one in your position - I should be the one who got neutralized. You don't deserve any of this," she said, her last words trailing off in a whisper.
"No," Death breathed as he tried to reach for Life's face. Life saw the movement and gently brought the hand to her cheek as she clutched it in her own.
"It should have been me, Death, not you. It was I who was at fault - why did you get punished for my mistakes? For my... my idiocy!" Life cried, her heaving sobs racking her chest. "I never wanted this for you," she whispered into his hand. "I never wanted any of this. I'm sorry. I'm so so sorry..."
"It... okay," Death croaked, his throat parched and lips dry. He wished that Karma hadn't neutralized him, and that he wasn't so weak. Never had he ever thought that he would be rendered helpless. Bitterness rose in his chest as he choked out a laugh, though it sounded more like a strangled cough. Silence blanketed them until Life cleared her throat nervously.
"Death?" she asked, and when he grunted, she continued. "Do you think, when all of this -" she waved her arms around dramatically, "- is over, that we could get some time to sort things out? I mean, as soon as I got my memories back, I left, and I have a lot of questions now that I've been able to grasp everything that... happened. I know that now isn't the right time, but we really need to talk."
Death barely managed to nod. "Of course," he said quietly.
Their conversation died, and the silence hung out for minutes. It wasn't long until his eyes began to droop, and before long, sleep devoured him.
When he woke up, he didn't feel any pain - in fact, he hadn't felt so good in weeks. Though the absence of his powers was obvious, he wasn't weak or drained, and when he muttered to himself, nothing hurt. There were no sparks of pain when he lifted his arm, nor when he sat himself up. In fact, he found himself pinching his arm to make sure it wasn't a dream. He was going to tell Life of the good news when he noticed that she was out cold. Her breathing was shallow, and her face was pallid. Bags were under her eyes, and she was sleeping restlessly. Judging her condition, Death was able to figure out what she had done, and gently cradled Life's hand.
"Oh, Life," Death whispered to no one but himself, "you didn't have to do that. You're so drained - I'm not worth that much energy."
Life muttered something in her sleep and rolled over. Despite her pale complexion and the bags under her eyes, Life looked peaceful in her sleep, almost angelic. Beautiful. "We'll get out of this hellhole," he said, planting a quick kiss on her forehead. "I promise."
●LIFE●
I promise. Death's voice echoed in her head, floating around. Life found herself sitting in the middle of a grassy field, the joyous green of the grass seeming to stretch infinitely, little yellowed flowers dotting the endless green. There was a slight breeze that reached down to tickle the grass, as well as the strands of Life's hair.
"Hello?" she called out with uncertainty. Something about the meadow was vaguely familiar, but she couldn't remember if she had been there before or perhaps seen it in some other dream. She was about to get up from her sitting position when a shadow fell over her. Startled, she whipped her head around to face a figure, small bands of glowing light curling around the form like vines, a glow emitting from it. Squinting, Life raised a hand to her brow, trying to make out who the figure was, but to no avail.
"Hello, Life," the figure responded, voice melodic and soothing.
Familiarity wrapped itself around Life, feeling like a comfortable blanket, but she couldn't remember where she had heard that voice before. She grunted in frustration, and the figure chuckled, raising a delicate hand to its face.
"Who are you?" Life asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Where are my manners? Here," it said, and the bright glow of its aura faded a bit, revealing more distinct facial features. Familiarity tugged at her memory again when Life realized that the figure in front of her was... herself. Something about the woman in front of her seemed different from the way she was then, sitting in the field, however, and Life noticed that the light was still in her eyes, she carried herself with more radiance, that she looked... content. Happy, even. "Have an idea now?" her mirrored self asked, eyes sparkling, warm smile on her face.
"You're... me?" Life whispered, and the other Life nodded, smiling in amusement.
"Precisely," she affirmed. "I'm a remnant from your old memories, a part of your past. In simpler terms, you can think of me as a past version of yourself. I don't have much time with you, though, so I need to make this quick. Death is in danger, and so are you."
At the mention of Death, Life perked up, alert. "How?" she demanded, and the past Life frowned, eyebrows furrowed.
"It has to do with Karma. I know what he's planning, and it's no good," she replied, anger lacing her tone and weaved in her stiff posture.
"What is he going to do?" Life asked nervously. "And why did you come to me? Now?"
Sighing, the past Life tapped her head. "Think, Life! Death is neutralized, so even if he knew what Karma is up to, there's nothing he can do. You're the only one who can do something about it. As for the plan," she started before leaning into Life and whispering into her ear.
Shocked, Life stepped back, hand against her chest, feeling her own rapid heartbeat. "No," she breathed. "We can do that?"
"Yes," the other Life said, then spat at the ground in disgust. "For someone so obsessed with the balance, Karma is doing a good job of tipping it," she said sarcastically, venom lacing her words.
Life shook her head. "No wonder he neutralized Death," she whispered to herself.
The past Life nodded. "As corrupted as he is, he's smart, and knew that Death would be too powerful for him to restrain. You, however, are not as powerful, so he is able to control you more easily."
"What do we have to do?" Life asked, and the other Life sighed.
"As much as I hate to do this, there is one exploit us gods and goddesses have - our true names. Should you or anyone else utter Karma's true name, you will have full control over him, and can make him do your bidding. If wielded skillfully, a true name can do terrible or wonderful things, from transforming someone into a puppet, with their consciousness trapped in their own body, to being lent someone else's powers temporarily. Someone telling you their true name is a symbol of absolute trust, for true names hold much power."
"Do you know Karma's true name?" Life asked, tears pooling in her eyes at the atrocity Karma was trying to commit.
The other Life shook her head sadly. "No, I don't, and I'm not sure if anyone knows it."
"Do you at least know ours?" Life asked, and the other Life blinked in surprise.
"You mean you don't remember?" the she whispered in disbelief, and Life nodded.
"No," she confessed, embarrassed, studying the grass beneath her intently. When she timidly looked up, she saw her other self smiling.
"It will come back to you, I'm sure of it," she said confidently, radiant with happiness. Suddenly, she doubled over and groaned, falling to the ground. When she uncurled herself from fetal position, she looked at Life pleadingly.
"Quick, Life, it's time for you to wake up," she urged, clasping her hands together as another groan escaped her mouth. "I can't stay any longer - warn Death before it's too late!" she called, and the meadow around Life faded to black.
Life felt someone holding her hand, and something soft under her head. When she opened her eyes, she found Death sitting a foot or so away from her, holding her hand. Death noticed her awake, and smiled.
"Did you sleep well?" he asked, his voice filling her with warmth and comfort.
"Yes," she replied, surprised by how strong her voice sounded, at the confidence in it. As she pushed herself up into a sitting position, she noticed Death's robe folded neatly into rectangle where her head had been resting. Her heart melted at Death's unnecessary kindness, and she smiled.
"You healed me, didn't you?" he asked, though he seemed to already know the answer. Life saw no point in lying, so she nodded.
"Of course you did," he muttered under his breath. "Why did I drag you down with me?" he whispered so quietly that Life had to strain to hear what he said.
"You didn't drag me down, Death. I chose to help you, and it was of my own volition," Life argued. "It's not your fault - none of this is. If we had to choose someone to blame, it would be me. None of this would be happening if I had agreed to escape with you, if I had believed a man I'd known for so long over one I had just met."
Death shook his head furiously. "Even if you left with us, Karma would have had a Plan B. He is the only one to blame."
So I've been told before, Life thought to herself. "Well, you wouldn't have had to rescue me if I had been sensible and hadn't killed the Guardian." When Death didn't say anything in response, Life knew she was right. "See? It is my fault, all of it comes back to me," she said dejectedly.
"No it isn't..." Death began, but he trailed off uncertainly.
A heavy silence hung between them, saturated with the problems that stemmed from the two of them. Neither did anything to try and break the silence, so they sat there, perfectly content with the way things were, until Life shifted uncomfortably and cleared her throat nervously.
"Death, I have to tell you something," she whispered, looking down and studying the fascinating pebble in front of her.
"What is it?" he asked, voice filled with concern. When Life glanced up to meet his steady gaze, she found it filled with worry that matched her own.
"In my dream, someone claiming to be my past self approached me and told me what Karma planned to do. She looked exactly like me, but I'm not sure if we should trust her. The whole thing seemed... off. Forget it. Maybe we shouldn't trust her," Life said.
"No. If it's about Karma, then we have to take every risk we can. Tell me," Death urged.
Life bit her lip and averted her gaze. "Karma wants to combine our powers," she said, her uneasiness creating butterflies in her stomach.
Death's eyes widened briefly before his gaze narrowed and he let out a low growl. "He wouldn't dare," he said, his voice like rumbling thunder.
"Do you know what our combined powers can do?" Life whispered, unsure if Death knew the knowledge she possessed, afraid that it was true.
"Of course." Death turned to face her fully, and she could see his rage clearly etched in his face, but it was also lined with fear. "Karma wants to combine our powers, but what you failed to mention was that he wants to combine them so he can resurrect the dead. He's going to try to bring back Destiny."