The Majesty of Choice

Prologue

Once upon a time some wispy old man who thought himself quite clever, decided that the best way to start a story was with the phrase 'once upon a time.' Was he right in thinking so? That's a matter of opinion. What isn't a matter of opinion is the matter in which events take place that come together to create a story. Stories are often perceived as fiction, but not always is the case as with our story here. Whether you believe it or not, every story is written from truth, somewhere, if maybe very deep inside.

Such is not the tale in which we trouble ourselves with today, as every word is true, just maybe not to some. All stories come to pass sooner or later if you're patient enough.

This story takes place in a time that has happened once or someday will.

It begins with the birth of a child. Not just any child though, one in particular, or else this story would be a bit longer.

To a family with no money to waste, Gerard came along, blissfully ignorant of the magical world around him.

For all intense and purposes, Gerard was ordinary. He bore no significance to his planet at the time of his birth whatsoever. He was a small, healthy baby who had wronged no one, and so deserved no wrongs in return.

Tragic it is how bad things happen to good people. And yet, good things happen to good people too, but that doesn't make for as much of a story.

Gerard's misfortune befell him not through malice, but through pure naiveté. In a land of myth, magic, and legend, a well-intentioned spell can become itself a curse.

First on our list of people to know, we begin with a kind mother, a negligent father, and a very amateur, but in over his head fairy, named Ray.

In a bedroom deep in the land of Frell, the newborn Gerard was unaware of the wary hearts around him, two of whom were dreading the arrival of what would become his first defining trait. Now, it should never be said that Brendon meant ill, but he was also very inexperienced in the world in which he lived, and did not think ahead to his actions. He never once gave a second thought on what spells would leave people with misgivings, he acted before thinking, and would never reevaluate. He's a stubborn fairy, of higher caliber than Ray, but one with a very similarly low level of skill.

Brendon's visit was incredibly fretted over, but there was no postponing when he would give his 'gift' to the newborn child. Gerard's mother had no choice in the matter. She and Ray were merely forced to hope that this would not become one of the newest in a string of bad gifts that Brendon had left his mark on. If only they could've known just how badly he'd mess up.

Brendon arrived early in the afternoon, much to the dismay of the residents of the house in which he entered. Gerard was asleep at first, awoken by the sound of a clattering outside which would mark Brendon's arrival.

"Oh no," Ray said, "He's here."

"Is there anything we can do?" Gerard's mother asked.

"Nothing free of consequence," Ray replies. His father was out, business as usual. Gerard was merely a few days old and already more important things took precedence in his father's life. This would become something he would grow used to.

Brendon came in through the window. Literally. He came in through the window, only open a crack, letting the sounds of nature surround the newborn child, who had previously been lying serenely in his crib. He flew into the window, which was not open far enough for a regular person to squeeze through, but Brendon was no ordinary person. He was a fairy. When he entered the room, he crashed into a dresser near the door, and made quite the commotion. By the time Brendon gathered himself and stood up straight in the small room, Gerard's wailing had overtaken the house.