Fates and Thrones

Covenant

After defeating that monster, it took a few minutes to gather myself. The dagger still aching to be used, but the electricity of it never subsided. I wanted to put it down, but I was not sure if there was something out there that would kill me if I was unarmed. So, instead, I just slid it into the hem of my pants on my hip and continued.

"I deserve better than this. What am I doing?" I questioned myself as I continued on my way. Yet, no matter how much I was unsure of what I was doing, I could not shake the feeling that I would not be shaken from the path that I am currently on.

The path that I followed led me to another crossroads. One, my sister stared at me, however, she looked identical to me. I raised my hand, reaching out to touch her. "Aleesia. You're here!" A sob wracked my chest as she caressed my cheek in return. Her mouth moved in time with mine, but no words came out.

"Aleesia, are you okay?" I was worried. This was no time to pull the mirror prank. We were in the Den of the Forgotten. "I need you to speak." She shook her head before pointing to the right. As she lifted her hand, I saw the scars that marked my wrists. I rubbed my arms and shook my head. "Sorry, Aleesia. You never had those marks on your wrists."

I wiped a tear away before grabbing the dagger again. The same empty feeling filled me again. "You picked the wrong person to mimic. I placed each scar on my wrist, for each time that I was not good enough. I wanted to have the physical pain to match the mental pain."

The mirrored version of me still mimicked me, tears rolling down its face. A small voice inside of me asked me to put the dagger down. I fought the empty feeling, listening to that light voice in my head, and shoved it back.

"I hope you learned that not everyone that seems okay on the outside is that easy to mimic." My voice echoed back at me before it disappeared.

"I did, I am so sorry for you. Take two lefts and you have your hardest challenge. Thank you for sparing me. You will do great, my lady." I nodded, confused about the title before following the directions.

The closer to the middle that I got, the area around me got foggier and thicker. The dagger seemed hungry and wanted to cleanse this whole area of anything around. As I grasped it to pull it out, I sliced my hip. I cried out and dropped it before holding my hip. "Mother fu-"

"Now, now. Child, I have taught you better language than that. Where are your manners?" Mother's warbled voice now stood in front of me, dressed just as she would but instead of her stark black hair it was eerily white.

I froze before nodding. "Yes, Mother. I am sorry."

"That is much better child. Now, let's talk. Have you solved the riddle yet?"

"I am the end of all things, the silence that follows the storm.
I am the shadow that lingers, the truth none can escape.
I am the divider of time, the ultimate fate.
I come for all, early or late, creeping through the cracks of life.
In my arms, kingdoms crumble, and even the stars bow.
I steal the final breath, and in my wake, nothing remains.
What am I?"

The riddle seemed to echo in the air around us, and I shook my head. "No, Mother. I have not had time."

"Do not be dense child. Remember all the riddles we did when you were younger?" I nodded before I could stop myself. Mother usually hated when we did not use words or address her by her title. I awaited the slap, but nothing came.

"Hurry now, I do not have much time before I get in trouble for meddling. I just know you, and how you get easily distracted."

"It sounds like The End?" Even I could hear the question in my voice.

"There are two sides of every coin. The Beginning and The End, Good and Evil. Though something may be Life's end does not mean it is the end. Just think of the coin. Darling Ajita, I love you. And I know you can do it. Now, it is time for you to accept your fate."

I froze before staring at Mother. "I love you too." That was the first time since I turned fifteen that Mother had shown me affection. I wanted to reach out and try and hug her, but she was gone before I had the chance.

I wiped away the tears, grabbed the dagger, and kept heading to the center. As I reached the center, I was greeted with a small child. He smiled at me, and I saw the rows and rows of teeth staring back at me.

"Well, you did better than I thought. Maybe you will pass the tests, and we can make a deal. Now, what is the answer to the riddle?"

"I was originally going to say, "The End" but that is wrong." I paused hoping I could get some sort of hint, but to no luck. The child's face gave nothing away. "No, the answer is "Death"."

The child impossibly smiled wider before raising his head and sniffing the air. "Well done, now for the final part of my game." I tightened my grip on the dagger just in time to see another shadow person disguising themselves as Aleesia.

"I have had enough of this. I am Ajita, I was born on the unluckiest day in so many years. I was hated, shunned, and now tested through shadows and death. I make my fate, and you will not control it."

As soon as I finished my speech, I launched the dagger at full strength at the monster. Except, it was not a monster. The moment the dagger made contact; I heard a very real scream that sounded just like those I heard every night. Very real, red blood wept from the wound in her chest.

"Aleesia!"