A Never-ending Cycle
\[Serenity’s POV\]
I’m drifting. My body is light and weighs almost nothing. I feel like I’m floating in a warm darkness that is slowly disrupted by a light that grows brighter by the minute until it is almost blinding.
“What?” I hiss, blocking my eyes from the bright light. “What is…”
“Serenity.”
The voice is soft and comforting, and I feel like I’ve heard it somewhere before. I’m not quite sure where it was, maybe in a distant memory or even a dream, but I’m certain that I know it.
“Sweetheart, you have to stop them.” It continues when I don’t speak. “Otherwise, I fear that our race will soon be ending.”
“Who are you?” I ask, blinking in an attempt to be able to see the one speaking. “Why do you know these things?”
As I speak, the light in front of me begins to fade; slowly but surely, I can soon see the one speaking, and she looks almost like my mother, but completely different.
“Grandma?” I whisper, remembering the stories I’ve heard of her from my mother. They were few, but enough for me to know just how special she was. “It’s you, right?”
I’m certain that it is her without her even responding, but I want to confirm. And if it is her, does that mean that I am dead?
“No,” I whisper, looking down at my naked body that is glowing. “Did I die?”
“You didn’t,” my grandmother responds. “You’re still alive and well, but you’re in enemy territory.”
At her words, memories of what happened before I passed out return to me, from Ellie’s attack to my being captured and my mother’s trying to intervene.
“Mom!” I gasp, remembering her bloody lips and nose. “Is she…”
“She’s fine,” my grandmother assures me. “At least for now.”
For now. These two words make my heart drop as the urge to ask her what she means overtakes me, but even then I don’t dare to ask. I knew deep down if I did, then there was a chance that maybe I actually wouldn’t ever want to wake up.
“Where is this?” I ask instead, looking around at the serene scenery.
We stand in a field with beautiful flowers that sway gently in a breeze. The sky above our heads is a perfect blue that not a single cloud would dare to mar, and the sun is shining brightly.
“Is this nirvana?”
“Not hardly,” my grandmother giggles, her voice tinkling. “This is the in-between.”
“Does that mean that you’re trapped here?” I ask, wondering why she hasn’t gone on to Nirvana, where she would be in the loving arms of the goddess instead of alone. “Did something happen?”
“I am simply making sure that the prophecy doesn’t come to be.” She responds gently. “I died much too early, and I never got the chance to tell your mother or your aunt anything. Because of that, I have unfinished business that I am working on completing.”
Nodding, I consider her words while remembering what is happening in the real world, and then I can’t help but ask.
“Do you know how to beat them?”
This is the only thing that I can think of as I remember Ezekial and Ellie’s devious plot. As it was, we were at a disadvantage because they had a mage on their team, but even with a mage, I was certain that there was a way that they could be beaten.
“There is only one way,” my grandmother responds, and by the sad look on her face, I know that I’m not going to like what it is that she has to say.
“Tell me,” I say, bracing myself. “What is the only way to beat them?”
“Your mother’s ability.”
At her words, my heart drops, and it feels like it is breaking into a million pieces. Even if I assumed this was what was coming, to hear it spoken openly left me feeling so damn scared and empty.
“Is there no other way?” I ask, my voice desperate. “Something that doesn’t involve possibly losing my mother.”
There had to be another way. There were always multiple possibilities for doing something, not one thing that beat all.
“It was the reason the goddess blessed her with the ability and why the one before her possessed it as well.” My grandmother continues, her voice melancholy. “To stop the prophecy from coming to be.”
“Does that mean that this has all happened before?” I ask, shock rushing through me. “Then will it continue to happen for all eternity?”
Instead of responding, my grandmother simply gives me a sad look, and I know everything that I need to know.
“So this is just a never-ending cycle of fighting and death.” I murmur. “But why?”
“Because the wolves offended the goddess long ago.” My grandmother responds. “And in doing so they guaranteed that they would be cursed for all eternity.”
For a moment, I don’t speak as anger towards the goddess rushes through me. Was I really hearing that the very one who created us was going to continue to punish us for something that we didn’t even do?
“And what will stop it?” I ask, though I have an inkling of what it will be.
“The end of the wolves.”
“Right,” I sigh, wondering why I even asked. “So, it’s an end-all.”
“That’s correct.” My grandmother confirms. “The only way to ensure that the curse no longer happens is for all wolf abilities to be eliminated from the world.”
“Gotcha.”
Shit. What the hell was even happening, and why would the goddess be so cruel to those she was meant to protect and love unconditionally? I mean, I was aware of what happened with Ezekial, Maverick, and all the other wolves back in the day, but this was certainly not because of them.
“Do you know what led to all this?” I ask my grandmother, realizing that trying to figure it out myself was pointless. “Do you think if we can find a way to appease her, then maybe the curse will finally be broken?”
Growing quiet, I wait while she stares at me, considering, and from the look on her face, I know that she doesn’t want to tell me.
“Please,” I plead. “You have to tell me what exactly is happening.”
As it was, I wasn’t quite sure how long I would be able to stay in this place before waking. I needed to know what was happening before then because I feared once I woke up I wouldn’t get the chance to ask my grandmother such things again.
“The wolves forsook the goddess in the past.” She says slowly. “She gave them her all, her love, the clothes off her back, and even their abilities even when it left her close to dying, but they didn’t appreciate what she did. Instead, they let their newfound abilities get to their heads, and they continued to fight for even more.”
“Like Ezekial and his followers.” I murmur, remembering the story I was told. “So, it is a cycle that just continues going.”
“That’s correct.” My grandmother confirms. “Only those who have always been hungry for strength and power giving up that power will end things.”
Remaining silent, I consider what she is saying as my hope almost diminishes.
“So, the only choice is either to keep repeating the cycle of the curse or to have all wolves disappear from the world.” I say now. “Is there no other way?”
How was it possible that the only options available were ones that would involve losing? Not only would the cycle continue if wolves existed, but my mother would die, ending this round of things.
“Mom’s sacrifice will be for nothing.” I growl, unwilling to accept this. “If that’s the case, I’d rather just let all the wolves disappear.”
“Are you saying that you’d prefer all wolves to lose their supernatural abilities and be reduced to humans in exchange for your mother’s life?” My grandmother asks. “Isn’t that a bit selfish?”
“Selfish how?” I demand. “Aren’t they selfish for wanting another to die for them? I don’t give a damn what I have to do; I won’t let my mother die for nothing.”