Perhaps in another life

          

"You know what's really strange to think about?" Kai said, as much to himself as to Thorne. "If Levana hadn't tried to kill Cinder when she was a kid, I might be engaged to her right now. She would already be queen. We could be plotting an alliance together."
          "Yeah, but she would have been raised on Luna. And from what I can tell, being raised on Luna really messes people up. She wouldn't be the cuddly cyborg we've all come to adore."
          "I know. I could have despised her as much as I despise Levana, though it's difficult to imagine."
― Marissa Meyer, Winter

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Perhaps in another life it could have been different, but how different could she have been? She was a Queen, and an Empress. One who was never questioned, insulted, or disobeyed. She was their goddess, and every one of them bowed down towards the ground to please her.

          Like a sharpened dagger used in combat, she sliced and placed everything to her preference to create the image she desired. She was perfect. She was whole. She was reminded of this every time they lowered their heads and said, "Your Majesty, Empress, Queen. Your Imperial Highness, Selene."

          What a shame it was for them to be nothing but pawns, constantly sacrificed in place of better positions. In life's game they would never match up to her. If they thought they could play, they should've won already, but she was born a leader and her soul was royalty. The most dangerous piece of the game. The one with true blood and a chosen soul.

           With all those pawns under her command, she had formed the perfect disaster. While her Aunt Levana had been the Queen Regent, she had begun a project. A project containing a weaponized disease. The disease which was the Rook, Knight, and Bishop all in one piece. She guessed Levana did one thing right before her untimely and unfortunate accident, resulting in her death.

Selene had forged it to her will, and no riots against her rule would ever be heard. Three strains of the disease had been made. A very contagious one for the Earthens, another that affected Lunars, and the perfected disease that only affected the one injected for anyone that wronged her.

          Why should they have the chance to rebel. We were born into roles. It is the only way to obtain control and "peace" over all. Free will between all people would be a disaster worse than what she did to those few who chose to do what they wanted, for themselves. Choices for the lowly were burdens upon her shoulders. Countless questions of "why" were nonsense with the only answers being "because" and "why not?" There was no such thing as a chosen branch of fate. Their premortal fate was their destiny from the very beginning.

          She herself, her husband, and their daughter had a destiny to fulfill. She was adept at acting, and no one suspected her.

          Amaris was barely two, yet still looked more like her mother every day. Amaris was the only being that Selene would share her true love with. Selene had not known that love could actually ever be felt emotionally, and up until Amaris had been born, she had only thought that the word was just a pretty lie that the ones who had "hope" would sing. The only problem was that Amaris showed love back, and her love would be her greatest weakness.

          Selene smiled when she saw Amaris. Even Kai smiled. Kai was so very oblivious to what was happening around him... it was almost adorable. He couldn't see through her, no one could. Kai had even used the word "love" when talking to them, completely unaware that she had once manipulated him to feel that way, and still manipulated him as to not seeing everything. When he looked at her, he saw a girl with pure and selfless intentions towards the people around her. Everyone who was near her saw that.