• The babe was absolutely silent. Its eyes were open, long gold lashes shadowing wide glassy brown eyes, tiny curled hands gripping the blanket that covered its small fragile body. Two figures stood over the cradle, contemplating.

    "Its eyes are strange," Kail said, playing with his gold watch - a sign of anxiety. The other man nodded, wearing the appearance of disinterest as he fiddled with the cross around his neck.

    "Brown, but it shimmers like gold, sir," he elaborated, his eyes on Kail, "It'll be under your care from now on."

    "What is it?"

    A slow grin curved across the man's features.

    "Godchild."

    ---

    She breathed deeply, more from anticipation than hesitation. Her head lifted, the sun hitting her curls at just the right angle to blind the audience with its inhumanly gold hue, and her dark eyes passed over the individual humans in the crowd, taking in their emotions with one glance, gathering them around her like a swirling vortex. She could feel them, locked behind fear....

    Her hand gripped her sword and pulled it out, the grate of metal against metal echoing in the silence. She jammed it in the air. The clean steel shone against the azure sky, releasing the suppressed hope, love, fear, and despair in one second.

    "I AM KING," she proclaimed.

    The crowd roared.

    ---

    She was struck by awe as the thin graceful creature whipped through the air and descended, its giant claws creating a circle of dust when it landed. She heard its roar, a strange blunted screech as it glittered in the sun.

    "Why are you here?" she called, eyes narrowed at the dragon. Her weapon was drawn, petty against the creature's massive jaws, but she felt no fear, only curiosity.

    The white gold legend tilted its head in a bow.

    "To serve you."

    ---

    "I can show you a whole new world - shimmering, splendid," she breathed, eyes wide with excitement, "And how it will change history!" It was not returned on the other end of the conversation however.

    Lan glared at her under his bangs, looking as if he were suffocating. "You are hopelessly delusional," he said, voice clipped, "The people will never accept that dragon's sorcery and you as King should know it."

    "It will be like rebirth, another Renaissance! Lan!" she persisted, "The economy will be made anew!"

    "It can't be rebirth if you were never born."

    Shock showed on her face. "What?"

    His gaze was cold. "Everyone knows."

    He stood stiffly, his entire body tensed, and walked away from her hurt figure. Why must one's anger melt into the wrong affairs? And birth - She was born. She was born. She had to be born... not...

    Created.

    She ran and threw herself on her bed, the very thought crumbling her resolve. It wasn't true. It couldn't be. As she denied, she couldn't help but think, why can't I cry?

    ---

    She was so dirty. The ground was so dirty. Why would the tunnel never end? No matter how far she ran, the black was endless. Somehow though, despite the lack of light, she could see the disturbing gold hue of her curls, the shimmers behind her that always disappeared when she spun around. She was running, melted in a pool of ebony and gold.

    Oh, how she hated that color.

    Suddenly a stab of pain hit her leg and she crumpled like a doll, feeling a knife like projection buried in her right thigh. She hissed, curled in a fetal position, narrowed eyes darting around madly, searching for her stalker. To her left, she heard a soft step. Immediately, filled with fear, she scrambled up and ran. Answering her previous wish, the tunnel ended - with a hard stone wall.

    Trapped. They will kill me, she thought hysterically as a man stepped into her blurred vision.

    Distantly, she caught the sight of a gold watch before she hit the ground.

    ---

    Kail smiled, looking very much like the middle aged priest he was.

    "I loved you," he told her collapsed form, dying of blood loss.

    "Yes, Father."

    Kail laughed in return. "I'm glad you call me 'Father'. That means you understand that I can't just be your father."

    "You are everyone's Father, Father."

    "Yes."

    Pause. Then; "... what am I?"

    Kail's eyes rolled up thoughtfully. "Not sure."

    "What do they call me? What does it mean?"

    "Godchild," the Father whispered as if the word was sacred. "One of God's failed attempt to create humans. Before he realized how he should make man more distant from him and many other things."

    "Am I a broken doll?" This time, her tone was very much bitter.

    The priest smiled endearingly. "No. You are an angel too close to God to be allowed existence."

    Suddenly, the room filled with light - blinding, gold. Kail's eyes went wide with confusion and fear when he saw her, his child, glowing, long gold wings shimmering behind her.

    "You still love me, but you love God more," she hypothesized, some strange suppressed emotion in her composure

    "Yes..." replied the shocked priest.

    An ironic smile slanted across her lips. "I'm jealous"

    Anger, Kail thought.

    He saw no more.

    ---

    The scenery was dreadful. The flowers had wilted into brown clumps, a shame of the plant species. The once marble floor had been dug out and sold, leaving dirt. All over the courtyard were craters across the floor. In the middle, she surveyed the damage she had caused and took an instant love for the ugliness; she was tired of her deceitful appearance. This land would suit her better. Behind her, an ancient figure in legend hovered.

    "You killed him."

    "So?"

    "It is a crime against nature to have your life taken away from you - but it is sacrilege to take away life with your own hands - you will go to hell." the dragon replied.

    She laughed a cold ripping laugh. The dragon suspected she felt no more - her expressions were out of habit. Her dark glittering eyes were still beautiful, but the beauty was painful... it hurt to look at such inhumanity. Tilting its long white neck downward, the dragon closed its eyes.

    "God Save the Queen," it whispered.

    ---

    "Lan."

    Her voice was scared. He could see it immediately - how he knew her expressions so well no matter how much they twisted and changed!

    "Lan, help, please!" her words bordered hysteria.

    Despite himself, he quickly gripped her to keep her upright, sane. He saw her beautiful face, frightening eyes, but wouldn't look away. He loved her still, even as she stood, unable to love and frightened like a lost puppy, dressed in a King's armor.

    "What's wrong?" he said gently, trying to soothe her.

    She was shaking, though no tears came out from her eyes. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she babbled, "I knew you loved me, but I couldn't return it, I'm sorry, I shouldn't be here, but please -

    - I forgot how to smile."

    ---

    "Oh my God." Her breath was full of energy, sparking in the air.

    She was smiling. How could she? How could she not? What was she doing? - what why, her thoughts couldn't stop flooding like a ocean breaking down a damn, flowing into the jammed river of memories, feelings, thoughts.

    Her lifetime's worth of tears flowed down her face.

    Behind her thoughts, she could hear Lan's excited laugh. She grabbed his shoulder, her laugh joining his. She felt his warm body pressed against hers and -

    The laughter stopped abruptly when he pressed his lips against hers.

    There was no love in her answering kiss, but is was enough for him.

    ---

    Even her back was beautiful, with those gold rippling wings, each feather razor sharp and abstract. Her gold hair blew in the wind as she stood erect in her regal costume.

    "Where are you going?"

    She smiled the smile he taught her and his heart wretched in pain, ripping itself apart, and scattering the pieces into oblivion.

    "Hell."

    Her brilliant wings arched and shot into her suddenly fragile body, red with gold everywhere, like a waterless rain in a morbid light show. Beyond the colors, he saw her cynical smile.

    Lan screamed a lullaby.

    She crumpled to the ugly dirt floor.

    ---

    "I should have loved you."

    ---

    Based Off Bright Full Moon's Submission