[ WP ] Death stared at his king , in full checkmate , and wished me luck . I had beaten death , and he could n't take me . He did n't tell me what would ...

`` So... can I go back now?'' 
 `` Back?'' 
 `` Yes. Back. Back home.'' 
 `` Oh no no no. That's not how it works.'' 
 If Death could smile, he'd be laughing. `` What do you mean?'' I stand, knocking the table. Chess pieces turn to dust at my feet, Death's king still lay shattered on the table in front of me. 
 `` You have walked through my door, now shut and locked behind you. No one is allowed back unless under specific orders. Your body has already been cremated and soul forgotten.'' 
 `` Then what was the point of the game? Is there truly no honour in death?'' 
 Death swirls in the darkness, his voices crackling in the shadows. `` That is for you to decide.'' 
 `` What?'' 
 `` I retire at last. Oblivion awaits me. Choose wisely, and heed not the prayers of desperate men.'' 
 I say nothing but my thoughts echo in the empty space. `` What do you mean?'' 
 `` Ave Atque Vale, Thanos. You have become death.''
