The Dawn of Light

(9)Pear-shaped Hope

Pear-shaped Hope

Shadow and Trimorphe purred at one another from across the lawn. The agile snow leopard had woken from her early morning slumber with a spike of energy and was now playfully chasing the black entity around the gardens. Shadow needed the exercise, so I let her annoy him for as long as she wanted. Give or take a few more minutes and Tri would retreat back to her favourite spot beside the courtyard pool.

I tried again to focus on my reading for the day- I held my advanced Illusionary magic class' lesson plan in my hand, but for the life of me I couldn't will myself to pay any attention to what I'd written two days ago.

I sighed and my forefinger nudged up to smooth out the crease in between my brows. Why did my daughter have to be so damn altruistic?

Perhaps Thanatos and I were too hard on her, but honestly, the mere thought of her there- on earth... No. She could visit and go on missions, but to go up there to 'save' a doomed society? Forget it. My daughter will not have that burden like I did- to help an unwilling and unstable community.

Although...

I suppose for me it did result in some of the best years of my life. I suppose if I hadn't taken that plunge to sacrifice myself for the greater good of the kingdom and deal with Ares and Alexus' treacherous ways then I wouldn't be where I was today. But it wasn't easy. Theia was hard-working and capable, but was she strong enough emotionally to deal with that pain? Perhaps she was- even more than me. But no. No, no. She can't go.

Besides, she had work to do here, in her future empire. It was vast and there were many inhabitants who needed her. I knew my daughter- she liked to be needed, but the problems on earth weren't easy to resolve, and trying to fix them won't bring anything but pain and tragedy. That's just the way things were.

Right?

"Aurora!"

A violent shout jumped up from the stone stairs in the corner. It was Thanatos' loud cry that had shaken me from my daydreaming and I bolted upright in my garden chair. "Over here!" I waved my hand as I spotted him and Opis searching the gardens to find where I was sitting.

We locked eyes and I immediately knew that there was something horribly wrong. Thanatos rushed over towards me; a small note flapping wildly in the wind as he stormed ahead with anger in his eyes. Opis scurried after him, but the old man could barely hold up; his wooden cane was tapping comically against the stone pathway and his eyes wide and wild.

"They're gone!"

"Excuse me?" I shook my head and stood up quickly as Thanatos approached me. Tri and Shadow had stopped playing and were now standing beside me, looking back and forth between my husband and I with big eyes.

"They're all gone!" Thanatos lifted the piece of paper and held it up for me to read.

I quickly realised that it was a letter- it was addressed to me.