Caligo

Caligo Means Darkness

In a time when people believed that magic was all around us, when the human race just began to develop, in a village far up north, two sisters were born. But don't be fooled, this is no fairy tale. The blur between good and evil is much thinner in real world. And humans were never good at telling them apart.

It was a dark night, full moon covered completely by black clouds. The kind of clouds that bring storms and bad news. But below, in the valley, the whole village was lit up. People gathered in the center, in front of the biggest hut in the village. The chiefs hut. Cries of a woman were carried through night, and with each scream, villagers held their breath, just to gasp at the next scream. This continued for a while. The whole village gathered because the chief's wife was giving birth, and the village druid foretold that she shall birth two girls, different in everything but the moment of birth. He also said that the girls shall be blessed by the strongest of elements: Darkness and Light.

And so the village waited. And with each scream the night became darker. Then, finally, cries of two babies were heard. Inside the hut, the healer, druid and chief were gathered around a stack of furs, on which lay a woman, holding two baby girls. Both girls opened their eyes, and in that moment clouds dispersed and the moon shined brighter than ever. One had soft amber eyes, the other unnatural blue ones. 'Lucis, the light' said the druid, pointing at the first girl, 'Caligo, the darkness' he pointed at the other one, whose piercing blue gaze examined her surroundings.

'One will be our savior, the other our doom.' The old man said, he and his wife, the healer, turned to exit the hut. 'Which one?' The chief asked. 'The one with the black heart.' answered the druid, and then they left, leaving both parents deep in thought as they threw worried looks at their blue-eyed daughter.

Years passed, and the girls lived and played like any normal children. They were as close as sisters get, but as their sixteenth summer approached, both started showing their differences. Lucis was more shy, softspoken, and adorned by all the village. Caligo was stubborn and had no problem with getting her point across. She followed no rules but her own, and frequently joined the hunters, for she was the best of them when it came to tracking, killing and fighting. The villagers were afraid of her.

At the night of their sixteenth summer, there was a full moon, and a ceremony was made for the girls.

Caligo was no fool, she was quite sharp, so she knew that the ceremony was more for Lucis than her. But she didn't mind, she was used to isolation. After all, these days only their mother, ever the loving heart, spoke with her. As the midnight approached, girls felt strange. Then the druid quieted the music, and on his word all the drums stopped. 'Look, good people, look at the blessed twins, it is time they gain their gifts. ' All eyes turned to them, excitement, fear and elation surged through crowd.

Like all those years ago, in a moment clouds dispersed and the full moon shined.energy was humming in the air, as the twins both gasped. Lucis was glowing white, levitating above ground, her soft giggles brought smiles through the crowd, her amber eyes sparkling.

Then a scream pierced the night, Caligo was kneeling, surrounded by shadows and her eyes were glowing blue. The shadows were alive, in shapes and forms of different predators like eagles, wolves , lions... their scratchy and creepy voices whispered, and their words echoed in everybody's mind:

One shall be your savior, the other your doom

The price payed for power

Will be her soul devoured

Black heart is her mark

The other humble but great

Shall stop this treat

Black heart is her mark

As suddenly as they appeared, the shadows left, and Caligo slowly stood up, panting and out of breath. She looked at her sister, as she slowly touched the ground, then at the villagers who watched her with fear and hatred. She was strong, but even she couldn't take their gazes. She knew that the only way to stop her will be to kill her. And she wasn't about to stand around and wait for them to try. Most of all, she never wanted to fight her sister, or to destroy humanity.

She slowly turned around, everything in her screamed not to turn them her back, but she knew they were too shocked to try anything. She could feel it, their emotions, their thoughts. Her powers sharpened everything, all of her senses. She hugged her mum, who was sobbing in tears, then she bowed to the chief, her dad she thought sadly. He gave her a nod, and she headed towards the woods. Maybe she could change her destiny if she stayed away from humans. Her mother ran after her and hugged her tightly, sobbing into her shoulder. It was hard to breathe for Caligo, maybe it was her mother's tight embrace, but it could be the weight in her chest that was making her choke on the tears she was holding back. Her eyes, and her throat burned. She was desperate to join her mother in her sobs, but she had to stay strong. Her name was Caligo, she knew that this will happen one day, she knew because Caligo means darkness.

With a deep breath, she pushed her mother away, and walked into the dark forest, leaving humanity back. Dark heart, she couldn't believe she had a dark heart, her thoughts were so fast and loud, not to mention there was so many, that her head hurt. But it had to be her. Lucis was too sweet to hurt a fly. And, who knows, she just got her powers, maybe the dark will change her.

'It had to be me', she concluded 'Caligo means darkness.'