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All Sidus should learn how to fight to protect themselves and one another in order to stand a chance against this threat. But the Caligo guard would never allow it.
They don’t believe any pleas we’ve made about the weakening shield or previous Sidus deaths. And after the last few nights of multiple deaths, I doubt they ever will.
“What are we supposed to do? Just blindly follow their rule and live our lives in a cage?” I ask.
“It is better to live in a cage than to be dead.”
“Is it?” How can anyone truly live when they’ve never been set free?
Her sigh is long and weary, the fight no longer in her. “Get some sleep. We’ll talk in the morning.”
I don’t want to fight with her. I know she means well, but I can no longer live my life hiding among the shadows. I need to see the world with my own eyes and not through the filtered thoughts and opinions of others.
I glance back at my mother and the worry that crinkles her eyes and forehead before she turns to leave. “I love you, always. I hope you know that.”
She pauses at my door, a quiet smile warming her eyes. “As do I, Seren, always.”
Before leaving, a mischievous look graces her face. “Ryuu will want to see you early. Don’t be late.”
I wince hearing her quiet chuckle move farther down the small hall between our two rooms. I have no problem getting up early, butCaptainRyuu takes early to another level.
My mother’s husband has been a thorn in my side these last few years. Ryuu is known as the only Sidus to win the Caligo competition and is a formidable force to deal with.
Though I doubt him staying on with the Caligo guards has given him a quiet life.
When our little family joined together, Ryuu never saw me as a newly acquired daughter but more of a soldier he could command at will. The crack of dawn is late for him and his form of torture that he likes to mask as training. His acquired training techniques tend to reflect the mood he’s in, and my mother keeps nothing from him bar the secret of my birth and abilities. He will surely take whatever frustrations he has on my nightly escapades out in my session.
Tomorrow is going to be a long day.
CHAPTER 3
Ireach up to catch the dawn as its golden rays slowly cast incandescent shades of burnt oranges and bright pinks across the sky. Everything around me is quiet, the silence a peaceful sanctuary that settles over me and keeps me warm as the cool morning slowly awakens.
The jagged cliffs conceal me from the world, a small haven that I can call my own.
I glance out upon the kingdom that is both a home and a cage, the wall’s colossal size making it impossible to ignore. The shield and its shadowy foundation darken the Sidus town below, casting its tainted darkness throughout and blocking nearly every piece of light from the emerging vibrant sun.
The distant palace stands tall, even amongst the mountains themselves.
I am awed by its beauty. Its pearly whites and golds shimmer in the soaring light, casting rays of wonder among the lush greens that surround it. Extravagant waterfalls cascade down the side of it, merging into the lake below before expanding out among the homes of the Caligo. The lake carries down to the Sidus town, turning murky the closer it gets to us.
Whereas the Caligo and their homes reach the high translucent shield and, in turn, the sun, the homes of most Sidus below see only shades of blacks and grays.
A line that is deftly drawn across one kingdom divides the two furthermore.
My mother never kept the truth of what I was from me. Born both from light and dark, I eternally hover between each world while never completely fitting in either. What I am goes against the very laws of nature. An imbalance that is unholy and should be destroyed.
A smirk tilts my lips at the thought. I am an unknown, and for that, I am feared, and anything feared should be destroyed. The odds will always be against me, but I will revel in proving wrong those who question my existence.
Embracing my shadows one last time before suppressing them for the day, I pull myself into the void and straight out onto the small alley that is almost completely deprived of light this early. Its dark cover guards my secret as I walk out into the bustling dark streets.
Buildings once similar to the majestic homes of the Caligo are now nothing more than disintegrating blocks of shaded structures. The sidewalk and streets now blend as one, no longer maintained, with more important necessities prioritized, such as food and shelter.
The shield started darkening at its base years ago, but one of the side effects is that it started rotting the plant life and decaying buildings.
Since the homes and land of the Sidus are the only things to suffer under its influence, the darkening shield is otherwise thought harmless. As the Caligo are high, near the top of the shield, no harm is befalling them, while the Sidus take the brunt of its ill effect. And although the atmosphere is still thick with its murky shades, the Sidus people stand strong and proud.
Our ability to cast and control the light is not weakened; instead, the darkness makes it stronger. Though the Sidus’ powers are not as strong as the Caligo’s, many found a new way to use their powers and adapt to the strange new environment.
