The Requiem of Misery [Standalone]

Chapter 3

"A pink marble? No, wait..." Kara shook her with a frown. "It's a pearl... oh, a ring?" She bent down to get a closer look, studying the small object. "My family was seriously losing their minds over a dumb piece of jewelry?"

The pearl, swirling in different shades of pink, was set in the center of a simple gold ring, and rested on a small, green pillow. It definitely wasn't terrifying like the story had made it out to be, and Kara blinked at it for a moment before she began howling in laughter.

Leaning on her desk chair for support, she tried to steady herself. "Why is everyone so dumb? Pshh... a bunch of scaredy cats if you ask me!" Now that she was eleven, stuff like that didn't scare her anymore. Moving the chair back, she plopped down in it and pushed back, putting some distance between her and the desk. "It's just a ring..."

Like she mentioned before, she wasn't afraid... but she was a little cautious. Might as well be careful on the small chance the ring was –

Kara

The girl jumped, almost falling out of her chair at the ominous voice that had boomed in her room. Her legs became wobbly like the lime jello she had eaten earlier that day. And the fear that hadn't existed sixty seconds ago began coursing through her body.

"Who..." She swallowed and swiped her purple hairbrush that had been lying on her floor. Pointing it in front of her, as if it were a steel sword, she asked, "Who's there? And how did you get in my room?"

She waited a few pounding heartbeats, wondering if the man's deep voice had been in her head. The hairbrush in her hand stopped trembling and her arm went limp before she took a deep breath. Staring at the popcorn ceiling above her head, she tried to understand what she had heard. Had she imagined it all? Was she going crazy? Maybe she was a little nervous – not scared – after seeing Grandpa Wilson today. It was her first time seeing a dead person. So, it made sense that she felt funny. Yeah, that was it.

Oh, Kara, the voice said playfully.

Her gaze shot to the source of it, landing on the little, wooden box.

"What." She sucked in a breath. "What is going on?"

The pearl, which had looked perfectly normal before, was now glowing. A bright light filled her room, turning the white walls a deep pink color. And as soon as every corner was touched by the glow, something warm filled her body. Her gaze moved to the pearl.

Kara, it cooed. Take the ring, Kara.

At that moment, her mind was completely blank – except for that shiny object. She knew she had to pick it up. It was her destiny. One that she had been chosen to fulfill. Whatever power had caused her body to grow still and move on its own must be pretty great.

Being such a young girl, Kara Summerton didn't understand that she was being manipulated by a desire that wasn't hers. She also didn't completely understand what it meant to have a destiny that needed to be fulfilled. But as the thoughts swarmed around in her brain, she thought it sounded nice.

Having lost control of herself, Kara's hand began to move towards the beaming, pearl ring.

...

Yes, Kara. Reach out and take hold of your destiny! Crow called out, smiling in the oblivion – which is what he named the dull place that he had been stuck in for the past few decades. The space was basically a barren wasteland of never-ending darkness. Whenever he was exiled to oblivion, he spent his time in the small cabin that he had made using some of the dead trees that used to be scattered around the area.