Chapter 2
"Where-Where am I?" I stammer. My head feels like a spinning tornado. Looking around, everything is covered in a white mist, yet, it's dark. It's almost like the mist is trapped in a box.
A feminine hand, garnished with sapphire blue nails, reaches out in front of my face. I instinctively reach for the helping hand, my small hand being enveloped in the larger one. "Wow, your touch feels like heaven." I remark as tingles shoot up my arm.
A light chuckle escapes the owner's lips, and when my eyes connect with the two sapphire orbs framed with raven black hair, my face goes paler than it was beforehand. "Sa-Saffron?" I sputter. "Oh my god." Literally.
"Yes, child, it is I, Saffron." She offers a kind, gleaming smile. "I have come to fetch you. We have some things to discuss."
"Um.. Okay."
She pulls me up, her arms deceivingly strong. Slowly, we make our way down a path hidden under white fog. After a few minutes of awkward silence, I feel the need to say something. "What is this place?"
"This is the Midmost. The place mortals go when they are battling life and death."
"Oh." I say dumbly. "Well.. What do we need to discuss?" I'm starting to grow impatient. That was never a quality of mine.
She just smiles. "You'll see. This way." She veers to the right, and when my eyes follow, I wonder how the sight of a giant white castle hadn't caught my eye until now.
I follow her retreating body up the glass staircase and through the giant doors. The entrance hall is stunning. Black crystal chandeliers dangle from the high ceiling... Actually, there is no ceiling, it's just the universe, filled with stars. Millions of beautiful stars.
Movement catches my eye, and land on a tall, burly looking man. His eyes are golden, with flecks of yellow, his face framed with a beard the color of almonds. His shaggy hair falls just above his eyes. "There you are, Saffron. And I see you've fetched Aureole." He offers a kind smile with his arm extended towards his lover, who takes his hand and is spun into his burly chest. She giggles at the gesture.
"You know my name?" I ask dumbly. Of course he does, idiot, he's a God.
"Well but of course. You're Aureole Solstice. Eighteen years old. A 'rainbow', I believe it's called on Earth. Powerful and educated, yet you let those idiots talk you into killing yourself." His strong eyes meet mine as my face heats up.
"But... I thought we had to, in order to rule.." My face scrunches up in confusion.
"No, child. That's what they want you to believe. Haven't you noticed that only certain people get 'chosen' to 'lead'? Only the people that pose a threat to their way of life." Saffron explains.
"So.. The whole thing is a set up to dispose of new potential leaders?" I ask.
"Precisely. Those old idiots didn't kill themselves. They faked it with a poison that slows a heartbeat and stage make-up."
"So then... I'm dead? Forever?" My eyes start to blur with tears. I feel like such an idiot. How could I have been so foolish?
"Well..." Saffron looks at Zanite, who gives a look of approval. "Actually, we have decided to make an exception for you." My face lights up with hope. "On one condition." She adds, dimming my lights.
"What is the exception?" I ask curiously.
"You must be the one to put an end to these selfish men's rule, and break the social barriers they have put in place" Saffron tells. Then Zanite adds, "Really, judging a person on their hair color? As if that has anything to do with intelligence level. How preposterous. Utterly ridiculous."
I smile weakly. I guess he does have a point. Surely there are people out there smarter than I, since I was tricked into killing myself.
"You must stop the segregation and discrimination, Aureole. Give everyone a fair chance at life, spread equality, spread hope." Saffron says seriously.
"So.. I have to somehow get rid of the High Counsel Members, and destroy our way of life in order to fix it? Easy-peasy..." I say the last part quietly, for only myself to hear. How am I supposed to do this?
"You've been deemed worthy. We have faith in you, child. Have faith in yourself." Saffron's white smile flashes at me. "Good luck. We'll be watching your actions." The two say as Saffrons' smile starts to get brighter, so bright that it's blinding me, quite literally. And then I slip into the darkness once again.
****
People's screams are filling my ears. No, wait, one person is screaming, a shrill, high pitched scream, only stopping when the person chokes on a broken sob. My head turns to the source of the noise and my eyes flicker open, taking in the blinding lights that my eyes seem to have forgotten about. I quickly close them. Then I lay there, trying to understand what's happened. Why am I laying on the ground? Why is this woman screaming and crying? Why is my head pounding and why does my neck hurt and chest feel wet?
Slowly, I bring a heavy handy up to touch my chest. It touches a cool, wet liquid. Then I continue up to my throat, feeling the soft, upraised skin. It's also covered in the wet liquid, but I don't understand where it is coming from. Slowly, I let my eyelids creep open, keeping them down to avoid the lights, and try command my body to sit upright.
"A-Aureole?" I hear my mother's voice, though it's raspier than normal.
"What happened? Where am I?" I ask, confused.
"I- I thought... I thought you were dead!" She says and pulls me into a death squeeze.
"I'm about to be if you don't release me!" I struggle to get the words out.
"Your neck.. I-it's healed.. How is that possible?" Her purple eyes meet my colored ones. She's got blood stains on her shirt now from being pressed against me. I guess that's what the liquid was.
My hand instinctively reaches up to touch my throat again. All I feel is the slight uprising of a scar, long and slim, across my slender, once perfect, neck. Then I remember being in.. the Midmost, I think the woman called it.
"I.. I met Saffron and Zanite, mom! They saved me!" It's then that my eyes search for the members of the counsel. It's then that I realize I'm still in the stadium, with billions of eyes all taking in the scene before them.
Slowly, I rise to my feet. And I stand tall, and proud, beaming one of my greatest fake smiles, making sure to look at each camera in front of me, and meet the eyes of each member of the counsel, before giving a grand bow, and calmly heading toward the doors I had entered through, beckoning for my mom to follow. Once we're safely on the other side of the room, I grab her by the hand, and run. I run as fast as I can back to my chambers, dragging her along behind me. She's probably really confused by this.
"What are you doing, Aureole? What happened?"
"The whole sacrifice is a lie, mom. The council members didn't actually kill themselves. They faked it. Saffron and Zanite told me so. They said that they never wanted the world to be classified by hair color! They said they want me to fix it!" It all comes out in a rush.
She looks at me funny. "Well... That doesn't really surprise me. But how are you supposed to fix the problem?"
"I have no idea. But they said I'm special. And that I'm the only one who could do it..."
"Well, you'd better get going before the Elders come to question you."
My smile is half-hearted, but I nod and give her a squeeze before dashing to the secret passage way that only myself and Albiniss know about.
It's time to leave home and make the world right. Easy peasy...
