Afterlife

• Prologue •

The only comfort she found was the sound of her gentle breathing.

     On steady feet Arielle travled onward through the dark abyss, it's cold air gripping at her flesh. Her eyes raked across the nothingness around her. Not a soul was in sight, living or dead.

Where do you go when you die?

     The question was found in many pieces of literature all over, and the answers, both similar and different alike, couldn't be more wrong.

     She parted her lips, humming ever so slightly at the world around her. Arielle's hand extended slowly, allowing herself to feel the rhythm of her own song. The wings on her back stretched open, feet beginning to twirl across the ground, a light beginning to glow beneath her feet.

     A smile formed on her face, her hands beckoning the light to surround her. "There you are," she whispered, lifting herself from the ground with a gentle flutter of her wings. The light drips away like a waterfall, revealing nothing but the glowing form of a girl curled up in the fetal position.

     "Don't be afraid, you're safe now," Arielle's hand twirled above the girl's head, creating a swirl of light which dissipated into a memory. She watched in awe, reliving a life that wasn't her own. From the moments of a childhood up to the moment of demise, the memory drips away to form the glowing outline of a wasp. Arielle's floating body leaned down, running a finger along the shape, the sound of buzzing filling her ears.

     "Life seems so long when you're alive," she mumbles, her hands lifting the wasp outline away from the girl. "But once it's over, what then?" The wasp lit up, taking a more 3D shape before circling Arielle's head. "Your life was hard, it seems, but don't let it deprive you of a better one here." Her hands guided the glowing insect back to the girl's sleeping form, it's small legs circling her chest before disappearing under her skin.

     She was gone after that, disappearing into the light in which she arrived from. A breath escaped from Arielle's lips, a single tear rolling down her cheek as she allowed herself to step away. Despite the inner turmoil she was experiencing, she allowed herself to move onward. She had a job to do, one that required all of her attention.

"You're on your way to being a Queen, Arielle."

     There was a light in the distance, her brows furrowed at the sight.

"Queen? I can't be the Queen! I... I don't know how!"

     A rush of nerves swarmed her insides. The light was growing, stretching across the area like a million fireflies.

"Of course you do, haven't I taught you anything? You were given a responsibility the day I placed you in this world, or have you forgotten already?"

     Arielle allowed herself to lift into the air with a flutter of her wings, eyes wincing at the ever growing light.

"How will I know if I'm ready?"

     Growing near, the light began to fade ever so slightly, revealing a girl laying atop an old clock surrounded by a bed of roses.

"I'll be watching you, testing each decision you make. If you can prove yourself, I won't be needed in this kingdom any longer."

     "It can't be..." her voice was a mere whisper as she flew just above the girl. Her fingers brushed the surface of the clock, its smooth glass cold to the touch. As her fingers pulled away, a string of light followed her movements, washing over the sleeping girl.

"Where will you go? I can't do this on my own!"

     Arielle watched as the light molded itself into the shape of a bat, nestling itself against the girl's chest. "Who are you?" She leaned down, pressing her head against the girl's to see into her memories.

"I can't stay here forever. The world is dying at every moment, kingdoms need to be created to welcome them all. They need you, Arielle, they need the light at the end of the tunnel."

     "Celestia." The name rolled off her tongue with ease, her lips cracking a smile as her eyes wandered over the resting girl. Half of her face was coverd in black hair, ending right beneath her chin. "Time is fickle thing, isn't it? I can only hope it's safe in your hands, my Lady." Her fingers twirled above Celestia's body, light once again appearing, however, it covered them both in it's warm embrace.

"I'll do what I must, for the sake of the dead."

     The light dug into her flesh as she felt it whisk them away. A faint sound of a ticking clock rang in her ears, a feeling of hands brushing against her face ever slightly.

"I've arrived."