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Epilogue

“As we gaze upon the ruins of that which came before, I want to remind you all that this is not the end, but rather a new beginning. Fear not the Hollowing, for it is merely an element in this new world, and not its definition.”

–Mother. The Styx, Pandemonium. 2 Years After.

* * *

Leah parked the truck just at the edge of sight.

The sun made its final descent, and gleamed off distant waves. It’d been some time since she had visited the ocean, and she couldn’t help but feel how small and unimposing it was when weighed against the greater world beyond. The mountains, the trees, the sky. Was the sea truly so vast in comparison?

Leah clasped the bellflower she’d plucked from the hills with her now-rejuvenated arm. It reminded her of the one Liam gave her, back when her own soul was on the cusp of disintegration. A tear fell free as she considered what had been lost, but he’d been right in his lesson. So long as she continued to find meaning in all that this world had to offer, she would never truly be dead.

Leah thought of where she would go next. Perhaps she could return to Pandemonium. With both Mother and Hades gone, their whole society would collapse without the right guidance. Or maybe she could utilize her skills to discover what had happened to Liam’s family. Most might consider such a challenge to be a foregone conclusion, but Leah had her skills, and it would be nice to use them for someone other than herself. Or perhaps she could just pick a direction at random and keep driving. The world was large, and there was so much of it that she’d never seen before.

But then again, maybe her choice didn’t matter. Maybe all she needed to care about was claiming the ephemeral bliss that could be gained with each day.

Leah breathed deep. Whatever happened next, whatever uncertainty came her way, she’d savor what time she’d been given.

And live her life to its fullest.

* * *

“Hurry up, Liam!” Evelyn ordered.

He scooped up the medical instructions. “Right, love. Sorry!”

The fluorescent lighting flickered, once again reminding Liam that he’d have to go back topside and fix the connection to the solar grid. How the hell had Mother kept up with all this damned maintenance?

Liam shook his head. There were more important matters at play than a couple loose wires. He sprinted down the hall and into their medical lab.

Evelyn smiled as he entered. To think that they had once been a couple strangers locked in a bunker by a mad scientist of a rezzer, but that was more than two years ago now, and Liam could hardly see his life without her. They had been through so much together, and the culmination of their relationship had been building until this moment.

“We’re fine, Liam,” Evelyn said. “You don’t have to keep reading it.”

He shrugged. “I know, I know. I just want to be careful.”

“Mother’s protocols are thorough, and you have to have sterilized this place a thousand times.”

“You never know what can go wrong, especially these days. I’m not exactly a doctor.”

She winked. “I am.”

He laughed. “Here we go again, lording over me with your fake degree. I’ll have you know that I once drank water from elephant dung. I bet Mother never made you do that.”

Evelyn started to chuckle, but cringed halfway through. “Crap, it’s coming.”

Liam froze. “Already? Are you sure…?”

She gasped. “Ah! Of course I’m sure!”

Liam went straight to work. Prepping the towels, bringing fresh water, attending to every need that came her way, and apologizing for every sleight he delivered to Evelyn, both real and imagined. Hours went by as the process wore on, and Liam did everything possible to aid in nature’s process.

And then just like that, Evelyn’s cries were eclipsed by another. The head popped free, and Liam quickly sliced open the umbilical cord.

It was a strange ordeal being here in this way. With Lilith’s birth, Liam had been more a spectator than participant, as the attending physicians were better qualified than him, and their presence somehow diluted the magic of the event.

But as Liam stared into the eyes of his second child, a sense of euphoria flowed through him that he hadn’t felt before. This was a new soul, experiencing the world in its first moments, and he was there to help facilitate the event.

“Boy or girl?” Evelyn asked, exhausted.

Liam bobbed the baby from one shoulder to the other and checked its business along the way. “Girl.”

She leaned back and grinned. “I guess you know what that means.”

He did. This was the first child of a new world. A survivor of the civilization that’d fallen before. Life would persevere through her own, and everyone would forever remember her story. She deserved to be named with the honor and privilege that came with the title.

Liam held his daughter close. “Welcome to life, Leah.”

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