Several Years Later At Chemora -
"Baba! Baba! Who is that girl? Why does she have a star over her head! "
"Sssshhh! " The little girl asking the question was instantly hushed.
" Don't you know dear that we don't talk about her? Not in the night. No, my little darling. Never. I will tell you all about her in the morning. Alright? "
But the little girl looked very angry at her mother.
" But why mother, was she not the one who brought peace and tranquility over our planet? "
Her tiny voice was fierce and strong.
The woman quickly pulled the blinds around her place and closed her windows. The little girl had been looking at a statue at the Central Square.
It was snowing in Chemora and the snow made the star above her head absolutely white.
" I will tell you the story. I will tell you the story again. But not during the hours of the darkness, my little angel. It is not safe. You know what's going on. " The mother begged. Almost terrified.
" Alright. I will wait till the sunrise. You can go to sleep. I will wake you up when it is time.
This time around I want the whole story. "
She announced.
The mother was tired from the entire day's labor. She dozed off without further protest.
The little girl sat there, staring at the statue , swinging her little legs.
" Mama! wake up! Wake up, it's dawn already. Now tell me her story. "
The woman rubbed her eyes as she looked out of her window. The blinds were still drawn but she could see the faint yellow light coming from behind it.
" Alright! Alright! I will tell you what I know. But this is the last time. Alright? I will not repeat this story ever again. Is that understood? "
The little girl nodded excitedly.
" So, we had this prophecy. Chemora was once divided into tribes and there was a lot of fighting between them. With the rise of the Southern Star peace was promised.
But the Darkness took control.
The legendary Heartstaff was brought forth from a far off planet and the Southern Star sacrificed herself.
They thought they had defeated the Darkness but it was lurking behind.
The legendary girl was born fathered by three knights. She came, she saw, she conquered and Chemora became paradise.
Nurtured under the care of her fathers, she ruled over these lands justly. She was a hero, a savior, a legend... all until... "
" Until, what Mama? "
The little girl shook her mother with curiosity beaming from her eyes. She was immersed in the story and she wanted to reach the climax.
But the mother had a different gut feeling.
She could already feel the chills creeping up her spines. It was not supposed to happen that way.
" Are you certain it's dawn break already? " The mother asked, trying to take a better look out.
The little girl chuckled as if she had cracked a perfect joke.
" What is it? " The mother asked as anger and terror filled her voice.
The little girl ran to the window and pulled the blinds away. It was still dark and the yellow light was from a street lamp turned in their direction.
The girl pointed at footprints on the snow as the mother held tightly onto her little girl.
" She talks to my mother. She told me to trick you. It worked. "
She laughed and clapped as the mother started howling in fear.
" You foolish girl. The only reason we still live here is because we cannot afford to go anywhere else. This woman is cursed. We cannot even take down her memorial.
She came as an angel but turned out , she was the devil all along.
A damned daughter or the daughter of the damned, whatever we call her, she will always be a monster. "
A laughter filled their room.
" Why are you teaching your child nonsense? She had more intelligence than you ignorant lot. "
The woman pulled whatever she could lay her hands on and started swinging at the invisible voice.
" Get away from us? Stay away from my daughter. Why are you doing this to us? What do you want from our children? "
She swung desperately as her room slowly started filling with an ethereal light.
A girl in a flowy white gown and hair as long as the trail of her dress, appeared.
She looked nothing like the memorial that the child was gazing at previously.
"Mama! She looks like a star. She is glowing. "
She pulled at her mother's sleeve, mesmerized.
"Do you want to come with me? I can show you more of this. Tell you more about me. " The girl smiled as the little girl ran towards her without any hesitation. Not even bothering to bid her mother goodbye.
" She is all that I have. Please take me, if you will. Leave her behind. Please. " The mother begged.
The girl with the star aura smiled,
" I cannot take you. Your souls have been tinted with darkness. You cannot see truth from lies. You believe what you are told to believe. I can only take one with pure souls.
I am building an army.
We must reclaim what the Darkness has taken.
Chemora must be purged from this eternal winter. "
Her voice was stern as she wrapped the little girl under her flowy sleeve, before covering her eyes tenderly.
" Wait! Please wait! Who are you? You are not the one who had come to fulfill the prophecy? You are not the Child-Eating monster, are you? "
The woman tried to grab onto the hem of her dress but was immediately sent reeling back with one swift wave of her hand.
" You already believe what you want to believe. Will it make any difference if I tell you the truth all over again? You are deaf, dumb and blind. "
The woman was still persistent.
" But who are you? " She begged again.
" Oh, don't you know me already. Did you just not introduce me to your daughter as the Daughter of the Damned? "
With another wave, she left the room as it was again engulfed in darkness. The only thing left behind was the tingling sensation of sprinkled stardust.