A Child of War

Mire froze as the ghostly wail rose above the sound of screams, gunfire, and death. It consumed everything until only it remained. He could only watch as the bodies in the courtyard all erupted into a vortex of blood that surrounding the howling figure, a small girl, no older than his own children had been.

Above two jets froze in the air, as if grabbed by the hand of a god. Mire felt his heartbeat grow faster, frantic. “What is this?’ he whispered.

The girl looked up at him, meeting his eyes, piercing him to his very core. Eyes of pure malevolence. Rage. His own eyes, eyes he himself carried.

The blood froze suddenly, hanging in the air, then rearranged itself into a long staircase, leading from the girl to him.

Then, in the blink of an eye, she was in front of him.

He couldn’t speak as she neared. He tried to close his eyes, to turn away but he couldn’t move.

“Of all the people in this world,” she whispered through clenched teeth, “you’re among the few I didn’t expect such treachery and evil from.

She turned away, descending the stairs and Mire suddenly found himself able to breathe, to speak. “Who are you,” he sputtered, coughing as he tried to draw in breath.

“It doesn’t matter who I am, because, let’s be honest,” she replied, slowly turning to face Mire again. “You don’t really care.”

Mire narrowed his eyes and stepped forward. As he did, however, the blood rose from the top of the stairs, pushing him back onto his balcony.

“Turn around, Mire Wesdon,” the girl said, “and look death in the eye.”

A click sounded behind him and Mire turned to see Tez Rylie solemnly staring at him. “You brought this one on yourself,” he said, firing the gun.

Tez looked down at his stomach, where Tez had fired. Blood poured freely from the wound.

He looked back to Tez who fired again, this time into Mire’s chest. He stumbled backward, off the balcony. As he fell, he caught sight of the girl again, looking back as him.

She’s right, he thought. I really don’t care who she is. I just… I wish I could see them again, he thought. His wife. His kids. They flashed into his mind one last time before he hit the ground and was no more.

***

Maki—Serenity—didn’t feel any pleasure watching Mire’s body crunch and crumple against the ground. In fact, she felt rather… sad. Bitter. Angry. It was time to finish what Tez had started for her.

She turned towards the capital shining in the distance. Clay, she thought. He was next. He was already hers, but he was like Tez—living, but also dead. Something new. Something she had placed a bit of hope in. Something that had failed her.

As she stepped past frightened soldiers at the gate to Mire’s house, she sent him a thought, to burn the house. The fire started immediately. Then she remembered the two jets above her. She threw stripped their missiles from them and hurled them towards the capital then threw the jets into the ground, trying to ignore the tears still streaming from her eyes.

I’m sorry, Ralis.

***

Izumi hurt when she woke. Soreness prevailed her body, pressuring her to fall asleep again, but something in the back of her mind pulled her to consciousness. Dread.

She sat up and looked around. Nothing in her room was out of the ordinary. Monitors still beeped- wires leading from her body back to them. The air was still that same stale hospital air. A teacup was still steaming on the desk beside her, left with a plate of food for when she awoke.

She frowned and turned to the window. Carefully, she removed the wires monitoring her, letting the machines freely beep in alarm, then stepped out of bed and to the window. She noted her stiffness as she pulled open the blinds. Nothing a few more days of rest wouldn’t fix.

Outside, nothing seemed amiss. The Capital was calm, but something still tugged at her. She scanned the hilly streets below, searching for any sign of trouble. Nothing.

She sighed and turned back to her bed when the ground began to tremble. She wheeled around in time to see two ships fly overhead. She watched them into the distance, the pit in her stomach expanding.

Glints of silver flashed, falling from the ships forwards the earth, followed by fire and smoke. She froze.

The planes circled back towards the point again then suddenly went down, More explosions.

Cursing, she rushed to the closet where she found her clothes, still grimy and covered in ash from her fight at the party. As quickly as she could, she stripped and changed, rushing out the door.

Nurses yelled as she rushed down the hallways, but she ignored them. Couldn’t they tell what was happening?

As she emerged into the twilight the first thing, she noticed was the scent. The horrible, acrid scent of burning flesh. Carried by billowing clouds of ash above her, mixing with flurried snow.

The streets, peaceful moments before, were now lined with soldiers and civilians alike, watching the rising fire in the distance. Mobilizing soldiers pushed the civilians towards the edges of the streets, pushing by in convoys of trucks and tanks, all carrying more soldiers. No one either noticed Izumi or seemed to care.

Izumi took a deep breath and ran towards the destruction, following the intermediate sounds of fighting. She kept to the back alleys, trying to keep haste as she approached the fighting. Louder and louder the sounds of war grew until Izumi turned the corner and found herself in a war zone.

Barricades of debris had been erected down the long street. Behind them, the smoke was so thick, Izumi could barely tell what was happening. Someone grabbed her shoulder. The Commander. “Izumi? What are you doing?”

“What’s happening here,” she asked.

The Commander grumbled, then stood up straight. “Not sure, to be entirely honest, but our weapons seem to have no effect.”

A flash of red in the dust caught Izumi’s eye. A truck shot out of the dust, trailing lines of crimson puncturing its hull. It swerved and crashed into one of the barricades. Its driver kicked open the door, stumbling out.

“We’ve got the President!” He called. “We’ve got him!” he shouted, just before one of the lines shot out, decapitating the man.

The Commander cursed, calling for his soldiers to advance. “Stay out of this one, Izumi,” he said, before following his men.

Red tendrils shot out of the clouded street, shredding the buildings and road ahead of them as Izumi caught eye of the President being ushered towards safety. She dashed towards him as out of the darkness, emerged a young girl, surrounded by tendrils of what Izumi realized were blood. Maki.

Confused, she tripped, tumbling onto the asphalt. She looked up at Maki—the girl was unrecognizable. “Maki!” she called. “Why are you doing this?”

The girl glanced her way, but otherwise ignored her, scanning the crowd of soldiers converging on her. They raised their weapons and fired. Izumi screamed, but the tendrils shot out, swatting the bullets away, then continued their work, ripping into the soldiers.

Those who didn’t fall to the spears of blood froze in their place, shriveling away into husks as blood shot up from their skin, merging with the swarm surrounding Maki.

Izumi scrambled back as one of the soldiers near her crumbled into ash. That’s not Maki, her mind screamed. It can’t be.

She held her breath as Maki, walked past her, ignoring her, focused on only one thing—Clay.

Izumi forced her eyes away from Maki, focusing on the President. Soldiers were ushering him back but her wasn’t going to make it, not that there was really anywhere to go.

“Maki,” Izumi whispered. “Please, what are you doing.”

She clenched her fists and ran towards the girl as the bloody cloud surrounding her shot out, grabbing President Clay, holding him in place.

“Maki!” Izumi shouted, throwing herself forward.

A spear of red formed in the girl’s hand, plunging towards Clay.

Without hesitation, Izumi dove in front of it. She felt the impact drive her back, throwing her against the President.

Gasping in pain, she looked up into the eyes of the girl who’d killed her. Her eyes were wide, filled with tears, her face covered in grime.

“It’s okay, Maki,” Izumi said, forcing herself to her knees.

Maki fell to her knees, “Izumi,” she whispered, eyes shaking.

With the last of her strength, Izumi pushed herself forward, falling into the girl’s arms, wrapping her in an embrace.

“It’s okay,” she whispered.

“It’s not,” Maki sobbed. “Ralis is gone, and now, and now,”

“Shush,” Izumi said, gently stroking her head. “Enough, Maki. It’s okay. Let it be over now, okay?”

Maki squeezed her tight. “Why do things have to be this way, Izumi? Why is the world so bad?”

“It’s not,” Izumi replied, feeling herself grow weak. “Sometimes people do bad things, but that’s just the way the world is. We do what we need to survive. We fight what we fear. We hate because we’re human. But you can’t continue this cycle, Maki. You have to let go. You can’t decide what’s right and wrong for other people, you have to let them do that. Only then can they make the right choice.”

“What is the right choice, Izumi? Everything is so wrong. How do we make it right?”

“You keep moving forward, Maki. Always. You make mistakes but you don’t give up. You keep going, over and over until the end. Don’t let the decisions other make force you into this cycle of hate, rage, and wrongdoing, Maki. Forgive them. Let them go. Help them make improve. Somethings can’t be made right, but they can change.”

Izumi gasped, suddenly feeling her pain. She squeezed Maki, then pulled away. Soldiers were gathering around them, unsure what to do. Izumi didn’t have much time. “You did this, didn’t you? Bring them back?”

Maki nodded. “I thought… I thought it would help.”

Izumi smiled, brushing the loose strands from Maki’s face. “I know it did, Maki. But some people were afraid and still are. Lives are precious because they’re short, Maki. Let it stay that way, okay? Don’t bring anyone back anymore, not even me. Not Ralis. Let us go.”

“I don’t want to lose you,” Maki whispered, stepping closer. “I don’t know what I’ll do.”

Izumi bent forward, kissing the top of Maki’s head. Her vision was fading. She only had moments. “That’s the best part about the future, Maki. It’s up to you. Make the best of it.”

The light vanished and Izumi knew she was gone.