We are all beings caught between the heavens and earth. In that gap some will wage war, some will feed ambition, some will seek revenge, and some will let love lead them to defiance. A type of defiance that goes against oppressive forces and against whatever gods we submit ourselves to. If we must be caught between that which is below and above, we should never be subjugated to anyone else. May our will be like Serapio’s in which we will defy gods or whatever authority claims they are over us, even if it means we love everything in the process. 

May we harbor love for another even if blood does not bind us together like it didn’t with Serapio and Okoa, but it connects in ways that blood wishes it could. May we find love that beseeches us to free ourselves from our oppressors like Xiala and the Teek, even if that resistance comes with a cost. Rather we die in our attempts to be free than to not act and make “cowards of the brave”. Rather we lose our life then be silent in subjugation and shame our ancestors that jumped before colonizers claimed them in mind, body, and spirit. May we know a love like Iktan and Naranpa’s where protection does not resemble smothering. May we be as fortunate to find a love like Serapio’s and Xiala’s that is freely given. A love “steadfast as the sea, kisses the shore eternal and never tires of the sand”.

Mirrored Heavens is an epic fantasy that explores the cost of ambition, power, the price of revenge, and defying gods/the will of anyone or anything that is not your own. Roanhorse’s words will inspire the reader to not only decolonize love, but to seek comfort in all the ways it may manifest itself. May we take heed to this fictional tale’s warning to prioritize love over power because power eventually becomes a task to disentangle from our desires. May we save space for that which we love as we live in the between. A space that is quiet, soft, and free much like “the quiet spaces between the stars.”