Generations

Chapter 15: Reflections

Chapter 15: Reflections

Dani couldn’t believe it.

In a moment, it was nearly too late. Both her sons were unconscious, and her daughter had nearly been killed. Heck, they had all nearly been killed. If she had been a second later, if she had not seen the flashing lights in the distance, she wouldn’t have known.

She should have known.

The Nightwings weren’t ones to just leave their pray alone. They’d just come stronger, more determined than ever. It wasn’t like her kids were hardened warriors either. They had fought off those Xyscons, and she knew each of them held great power within.

But these were the Nightwings, those who had been trained in battle since birth, whose only goal was the destruction of the world. A couple kids couldn’t stand against something like that. Not for long anyway.

She remembered her youth, the first battle she was in, the fear, the desperation, and all the death around her. They had outnumbered the Nightwings, had the finest technology at their disposal, but that was nothing compared to the magic those demons possessed. If anything it was a weakness, a crutch to lean on that when broken, left them powerless.

She was one of the chosen ones, a gift from her dad that set her apart. He was their commander, their protector. He was the one to beat back those armies of hell; the darkness couldn’t stand against the chosen.

She didn’t understand much of it then, and only a little more now. But they were set apart for this purpose, which, despite all the pain and loss, was something she loved. She bent down, picking her son up, feeling his limp body rest in her arms. She wondered when he’d wake up, or even if he would. Whatever magic they used against him was great, and it wasn’t like she knew how to just reverse something like this. Done wrong, it could kill him.

As she held her kids in her arms, she couldn’t help but be reminded of the horrors of war. The way blood fell indiscriminately; the way bullets tore through flesh, not knowing who were friend or foe, and most of all, the way death flowed like a wave, taking its unfortunate victims under, never to be seen again.

Sometimes she thought those were the lucky ones, the ones who didn’t have to live with the guilt, who lived their life to the fullest, even if it ended far too soon. And looking down at her sons, barely breathing, hardly living, and the pain she could see, she felt that pain all over again. She had hope that they’d recover, but this hope, couldn’t take away their hurt, take away the sights before her now. She couldn’t erase their memories of what they had been through, no matter how hard she tried.

There were soldiers now, gifted ones with awesome powers, the kind that stories are written about for generations to come. It was a great honor, a great joy even. They could be heroes, and she knew that they were destined for greatness since the day they were born. She thinks back to the day of Jason’s birth, how the world took an unseen breath, how the joy that filled her overwhelmed all the pain.

She thought it was the simple joy of giving birth, but since that day, she never forgot, never looked away from that fleeting feeling. Over the years, she thought she was crazy, that for all the joy she had in raising him, along with the headaches along the way, he was just a normal kid. A sarcastic, smart aleck kid she wanted to smack more than once, but still a good kid deep down, at least when he wanted to be.

But then seeing what he was capable of, that he wasn’t willing to run when he felt he could help. Well, it didn’t seem like he even knew what he could do, but he didn’t let that stop him. Fighting the Xyscons like that, and then trying to stand against these Nightwings.