"for the beauty of the rose, we also water the thorns."
Descendant of Loa lineage, Karliah Shango stems from masters of Haitian and the old Oyo Empire Vodou. After the nuclear wipe out, she finds herself thrown into leadership with little comprehe...
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Michael's ring clad fingers ran along the marble counter top of Karliah's bathroom, his blue eyes lingering upon everything from her furniture to the chandelier that hung above her bed. He scoffed, seemingly astonished to find her 'shelter' was nothing of a shelter at all, but instead a modernly furnished, underground city of sorts.
Of course, he was only subjected to her bedroom, assuming the many people beyond the doors wouldn't take much of a liking to him in the slightest. He'd found himself in her chambers by accident. It seemed to be that only in a mere blink of an eye his surroundings immediately changed, finding the bland, candle-ridden outpost had been replaced with a lively bedroom of paintings, plants (which he'd yet to understand how they'd been surviving), running water, and electricity.
It was almost as if the underground city was built beforehand, in preparation for the end of times. It made sense to him, considering her explanation to him days prior - that her people had grown aware of what would soon come to be.
The sound of mumbled bickering soon met his ears as the bedroom door slammed open, revealing a very disheveled Karliah and her very angry mother.
"I truly do wonder, Karliah, do you ever think before you make these stupid decisions of yours?" Eshe shouted, slamming the door behind her.
Michael leaned against the door frame of the bathroom, out of sight as he looked between the two. "Papa knew Lourdes, mom, she's not just some random fucking person I chose because I got bored!" Karliah retorted.
"I didn't ask for you to pick someone your grandfather knew. I told you to choose someone fit to lead the white division - not someone convenient." her mother shouted.
Karliah rubbed her forehead, agitation falling upon her face. "I didn't choose her because it was convenient - Asim, Idella, Markus - we all chose her because she was the best pick out of all of them-"
"Out of all of them? You had a hundred to get through and found one goddamn person you thought was fit and stopped!"
Karliah closed her eyes, a deep sigh escaping her nose, "I chose who I chose. I'm not changing my mind." she growled.
Eshe treaded towards her, "I'm sick of this, Karliah. You've got one job to do, and somehow you seem to find any and every way to fuck this up." she spat, eyeing her before turning on her heel to leave.
The girl shook her head, "You're the only one thinking I'm fucking this up. I have yet to compromise this kingdom, and still here you are, it's always you-"
Eshe marched toward her, a finger directed at her own chest, "I'm the only one who can and will tell you the truth, Karliah."
Karliah's brows perched, "The truth?" she began to shake her head once again, growing inches away from Eshe. "No. No, you haven't told me shit. The reason Legba brought you back, why I was born, this mess of a world you all expect me to fix? You haven't done anything but ridicule me and blame me from the moment I took my first breath, so don't you dare lie to me." she hissed.
A scowl met her mother's face, no response sounding from her mouth. A harsh sound of a slap echoed through the room, Karliah stumbling to the ground as she grabbed a hold of her welting cheek.
Her breath hitched as Eshe crouched in front of her, "You will never bring up Papa Legba or Marie again. Do you understand?" she spat.
Karliah only scowled at her, tears welling in her eyes as her mother stood, making her way out of the room with a slam of the door.
A choked sob left her lips, the stinging pain of her face growing to be more bearable than the unrequited feelings her mother had granted her.
Michael suddenly stepped forward, his footsteps sounding in the air alongside Karliah's cries. He kneeled down beside her, reaching out to grab a hold of her arms. She jumped, a hiccuped cry sounding from her mouth, "Relax. It's just me." his voice spoke cooly.
Her red rimmed eyes met his, hesitant for a brief moment. He raised an expectant brow before she finally allowed him to pull her up, his arm wrapped around her shoulders as he led her to the bathroom.
She sat upon the edge of the bathtub, watching as he ran a washcloth under the faucet. Wringing it out, he made his way in front of her, "Has she ever done that before?" he asked, no disguised or sarcastic tone in his voice.
She nodded slightly as his fingers fell under her chin, causing her to look up at him. She winced slightly at the feeling of the cold cloth meeting her cheek. "When?"
"I was eight. My dad found out and threatened to take me and leave. She never did it again - until now, at least," she barely whispered, gazing up into his blue eyes.
He hummed, taking a hold of her hand and placing it against the cloth. "I'm assuming you have some type of painkillers in here," he spoke almost jokingly. Karliah only nodded, motioning to the shelf besides the mirror.
Michael frowned, pulling the pills from the abundance of vitamins and several other nameless bottles. "How the hell do you have all of this?"
"We have a medical bay, they make our pills and medicine and our doctors distribute them." she explained, a frown eliciting from Michael.
"Your people really prepared for this," he muttered in disbelief, more so to himself than Karliah, as he poured two out for the girl and filled a nearby glass with water, holding it out for her.
She nodded meekly, tossing the pills back before gulping the water down.
Michael suddenly crouched in front of her, crossing his arms over her thighs as he looked up at her, an unrecognizable look on his face.
"How many people are here?" he questioned.
Karliah stared at him briefly, Markus' words running laps in her head. "A lot."
The corners of his lips curled, a slight huff of a laugh escaping his nose. "I'm not here to wreck havoc on you or anyone here," he admitted.
"You've already wrecked havoc upon the world... I know." she muttered.
He only smiled, a sense of infatuation growing within him. "I'm sure you do," he rasped with a nod.
He looked between her beady eyes, running a tongue over his lip as he stood. "I understand you don't have full control over your powers, am I correct?"
Her brows tugged together as she nodded slightly.
The man clasped his arms behind his back, his blue eyes peering down at her. "I can help you, teach you all you need to know."
Her gaze lingered on him for a moment before a scoff passed her lips, "I don't want your help-"
"You need my help. I'm sure you're well aware of the prophecy set in place, but the fact of the matter is you're strong, willful, unlike any other witch or queen to step foot on earth."
Karliah shook her head, "Why does any of this matter?" she asked exasperatedly.
Michael smirked, "Perhaps, we could reign together."
