Part I
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Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness. --Martin Luther King, Jr.
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She stared down into the water, eyes bright with wonder. There was a crunch, and dirty paws began to pry the well-sealed lid off of an ancient trunk. Flashes of gold from within the darkened chamber caught her eyes and the desire of treasure seemed to encase her mind. There was a sudden feeling; a sudden lust for riches which engulfed her, but her excited gaze turned over to her sister, and all selfish desires faded away.
The trunk was opened. There was a sharp hiss as foul air flooded into the purity of the forest around them. She could only peer inside for so long, for in only a moment of examination, Katrina fell backwards, mouth agape with awe. At once she knew that those two objects which filled her vision—those two medallions made from gold and rubies were far, far more valuable than what met the eye.
Though Katrina felt deep caution over the treasures, her sister dove over to their chest and lifted them out of their wooden prison. The moment her fingers grasped at the metals, her eyes grew large. Katrina watched as the medallions crackled and sparked from the contact with her sister’s skin. She watched as her sister parted her hair and placed one medallion around her own naive neck. When Katrina didn’t move, she placed the second medallion around Katrina’s.
A loud drum began to beat from somewhere far away, growing faster and faster. Katrina began to shake. Animals from all over the forest suddenly crashed through the water and the trees and the grasses surrounding the two girls. Stampedes of deer and rabbits and wolves all shattered the silence, howling with anticipation. A great smoke rained down from the heavens, and in the moments to follow, total chaos echoed across the entire Earth.
But then, for only a moment all was silent. Yet silence in the purest of forms may never last long. For then from the fires lit within the very pits of hell itself came the voice. The prophet. The one who spoke about the curse.
The words burned Katrina’s ears, and she fell to the floor, unconscious.
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Part II
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No rain can fall on something so wicked. For all that can thrive in a fruitless land is venom.
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It was a while later when she awoke again, and even longer after that when Katrina finally began move her parched body. The stream below her had dried, and in her horror, she still clutched the medallion. The terrible memories which plagued her dreams had really occurred. The voice from hell haunted her. If what they spoke was true, then it would not have rained since she and her sister had discovered these cursed objects. But how could Katrina ever believe what they had spoken? Everything up to this point had abided by at least some laws of nature and reason, but this concept was madness.
It wasn’t until she looked up that her mind changed. In the sky, the stars twinkled brightly, shining blue with frozen auras. In fear, the young girl began to realize that this was an autumn sky, and her doubts were confirmed when she feebly raised a hand to chart the star’s movement. They were not in the same positions as before. In fact, they were foreword two months from when Katrina had fallen into her slumber. The voice had been correct after all. If Katrina had been sleeping for two whole months, then the amulet she carried really was what he spoke of; an object granting immortality and immense power but with it, insanity.
Katrina stared down at the cursed object, knowing what she had to do. This gift of life was tantalizing. She knew all of the possibilities an immortal could create; Katrina could build kingdoms out of sand and grow fruitful villages and out of nothing at all. She would be a goddess in the form of a mortal woman, and she could rule the entire planet. But her mind also began to tune into the lives around her. Surely her village, which thrived on each year’s harvest, would be doomed. Without rain, her people would die.
Katrina knew that she would have to act fast before the voice of hunger would eat away at her mind, and the icy grasp of desire would mold her brain into madness. Before she could think any further, she tore the terrible medallion from her throat and cast it into the dirt. With a large stone she bashed it over and over until it lay withered and cracked. A sizzle and burst of light sprouted from the unholy object and slowly dissipated off into the heavens.
Yet Katrina also knew of the danger back in her village. Her sister surely had not given up her own half of the curse; after all, the immortality it granted was enough to web any man with even a hint of lust into its grasp. Knowing the ambition which stirred in her kin’s heart, Katrina was unsettled. She hurried back to her home, growing more frightened by the second. When she reached the borders of her homeland, mystified anger struck at her chest. People lay in the streets crying out with thirst, and the well in the center of the village had run dry. But in the midst of all of this anguish, a new power had taken shape. A statue of a new queen sat atop this drained life-source: a statue of Katrina’s sister.
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Part III
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When honor and the Law no longer stand on the same side of the line, how do we choose? --Anne Bishop, Heir to the Shadows
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Katrina narrowed her eyes. It had been a two days since her return, and she had not slept for even a moment. All of her thoughts carried nightmarish material and every time she closed her eyes, the medallion's call echoed inside of her mind. She had spent all of her time sitting alone in her room thinking. Thinking terrible thoughts about where her loyalties stood and how she would be able to destroy this wicked object before it destroyed everyone that she cared about.
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Before long, she found herself peering over her sister's sleeping form. Confusion lit Katrina's mind and her body began to cry. It was almost as if life were drawing her forward, playing like a movie inside of her mind. Her body was so tired, yes so very tired. It cried with hunger and thirst and she felt her bones crumbling with weakness. Her sister's face shone with peace and light, completely veiling the dark undertones of reality. Katrina knew; she knew deep down with all of her heart that her sister had played dirty. And no matter what happened; no matter who would fall in the process, she knew that this darkness would have to die. In the instant, a million thoughts tracing through her head, Katrina grasped onto the golden medallion and softly lifted it above her sister's head. She had made it no further than the door when golden eyes peeled open and realized what deed had been done.
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Katrina was pummel to the floor, but she clenched onto the prize with her soul. She knew that she could not let her sister even touch it. She would stop at nothing to protect this beautiful poison. Yet how could Katrina fight when she was weaker than a young child? She was quickly and easily beat down, and in no time at all, her sister's fingers clenched the evil metal.
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The world began to shake violently. A mighty cavern split the ground below them in half and from the tear, magma and smoke rose up. Awakened fires began to scorch the dry earth and the village began to burn. Katrina cried out, begging for her kin to stop; she called deep words which pierced her own heart but it was to no avail. Her sister stood above Katrina for what felt like a lifetime, bestowing, in illuminated glory, her wrath. And Katrina thought in that lifetime that she was about to die. Surely, surely, she would be swept away from this Earth, and now she was ready for it to happen, giving up her own hopes and dreams and thoughts to the medallion which would yield itself to be the final breath of the world. Yet it did not happen.
Her sister seemed to be frozen in place, watching Katrina breathlessly preparing for death. The medallion, clasped in a bone-tight grip, was loosened as the threat seemed to be abolished. She met her sibling's broken gaze and paused. Katrina would never quite know what happened, but she did know what to do in that moment. The opening was hers. She yelled to the sky, and violently lashed out, clawing with her hands and her feet and all of her muscles, overtaking the shocked queen until she dropped the treasure.
Her sister shrieked and lunged at her, but without the medallion, she was no greater in strength than Katrina. She tried to run at her sister, but was blinded from the burning light. Smoke hit her face and she screamed more. She could hear her sister and followed the sound. Yet before she could arrive, Katrina cast the medallion down into the fire, tears wetting the dust on her cheeks and throat. She watched the small golden medallion fall ever so peacefully to its doom, and sat in wonderment at how such a cursed object could ever be so beautiful. Her sister flailed about and dived into the pit, trying her hardest to save it. Perhaps she thought she could, for she dove right into the lava below. Katrina watched, saddened at this corruption. It didn't have to end like this. She sat back, sins dripping from her body; flowing from her core and cried out to the heavens, “It is done.”
And it rained.
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1,696 words.
