So, Dolores Hargreeves is dead.

But what of it? Did you really think that was the end of her story?

I am here to tell you otherwise. Death is not the end as many people seem to think it is. That's the trouble with humans: they struggle to believe in what they cannot see. I am pleased to inform you that, as in most cases, they are wrong. There's always more that happens after the last word, after the last page, after you close the book. It continues on even when you think it's over.

You may hate me for claiming her life at last. You may begrudge me for (my . . . attempt. . . at) ensuring that she does not return to the land of the living. That is fine. It is not in my purview to be concerned with being liked. However, I will be the first to admit that I am not without my flaws. Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to be admired as much as living was.

No one hates the first breath of life like they fear the last. They wait for it, holding their own as their offspring lets out the first lung-breaking cry of freedom. When they hear it, their own shouts of joy mingle in the air, creating a cacophony of sound. It is almost ironic that, at the end, it is so quiet one could hear a pin drop.

Perhaps, every so often, I wish that my presence would inspire the same jubilation. So, I will make my best attempt at being cordial:

***𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐄 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐓 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐑***

In the end, everybody will get to live— though
not necessarily in the way you might expect.

I'm getting ahead of myself again, aren't I? As much as I try to break this habit, it is so very hard for me to change. Forgive me; when you have been around for centuries— eons— one tends to get stuck in their ways. I'm sure you understand. (Or, perhaps not— it is not up to me to decide how you feel.) You must be anxious to learn about what I'm leading up to.

The fact of the matter is this: Dolores Hargreeves did not take kindly to being a mistake.

She did not go quietly into the light like she should have. However, she is not the only one to blame. God likes her playthings; she is a vindictive little creature when she does not get her way. (I personally avoid her as much as I can.) She was very displeased when Dolores would not stay dead and seized the opportunity to extract her revenge.

***𝐀𝐃𝐕𝐈𝐂𝐄 𝐓𝐎 𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐃𝐈𝐒𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐀𝐓𝐄 𝐁𝐄𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒***

Do not tell God that she is wrong.
Now that would be a mistake.

It is in this way that Dolores Hargreeves ended up in The Void.

It would have been easier— simpler— to let the Word Shaker make her own peace and move on. But that is not God's way of doing things. Instead, she wanted to keep an eye on her Wild Card, to make sure that the girl wouldn't cause her any more trouble. 

To my great amusement, it is exactly this decision that allows Dolores to escape her fate once more. For a supposedly infallible being, God could use a dose of humility.

You see, God overlooked Dolores' greatest asset— her own superpower, if you will: she will fight tooth and nail to protect her loved ones. It is not in her nature to give up, even when there is no easy way out.

***𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐏𝐄𝐍𝐒 𝐍𝐄𝐗𝐓***

In the end, The Void would not be able to hold
her, for she was never meant to stay there.
Dolores was not one to simply accept her fate.
No, she bent it to her will, for she was one
of the few who understood the way words
could shape one's destiny.

Death was not the end for Dolores Hargreeves.

It was merely the next big adventure.