Bloodlines of Archaea I. Afira

The long table in the center of the cobblestone room which was decorated in maps, paintings, murals, and torches was decorated in nicely lit candles and a feast for the gods. Turkeys lied there, stuffed and nicely adorned in fruits. The smell of freshly cooked fish and desserts filled the air along with the sound of voices and laughter. I couldn’t remember the last time a royal banquet like this one had been held, not since the death of my mother. The feast brought back painful memories which I pushed to the side and tried to enjoy myself instead. Tao stood up from the head of the table, her red armor capturing the light of the torches and her long braided hair swayed gently in the wind. “A toast,” she began, holding up her drink of sweet tea. “To the heroes of ancient songs meant to save us all,” she finished, moving her glass to the middle of the table and then crashing it into each of our’s one at a time.

I sat to the right of a still soaking Akuma, who attempted to act casual, but very much wasted his attempts when things continuously slipped from his hands and onto the floor. I laughed each time.

The meal continued for quite some time, the air still filled with the ringing voices of unnecessary celebration. After a while, Tao pulled me and Akuma aside, using the excuse that she had found something to show “the queen.” After she had announced this, Akuma and I discreetly got up from our seats and followed Tao. When we were alone, she began to speak in a hushed voice. “There are many reasons I pulled you aside for this moment, but first, I would like to tell you just how proud of you I am,” she said quietly. I blushed, looking into her eyes carefully as she spoke. Akuma glanced over, uncomfortably.

“I’m flattered, but we’re really not that different.”

“It’s true,” Akuma said, “we’re still the same people we were before.”

“And that’s where you’re wrong,” she said. “You see, the war is far from over. Sombra is more like the first chip in the iceberg. There will be many more after her, each one stronger than the last. It wasn’t just her who killed all of those gods, it was a world of shadows,” she said quietly.

“How do you know this?” I asked.

She hesitated for a moment, seeming to be deciding of my trust-worthiness. “Because,” she began. “I was one of them.”

I stared up into her eyes. “What? What do you mean? You weren’t a-” I glanced over at Akuma, seeing clearly the terror in his eyes as he looked into her dark eyes.-

“Oh children, but I was.”

I was unsure of how to react, so (whether it was the best thing to do or not) I just stood there, unable to speak and ended up just waiting for her to continue.

“I know,” she said, “I was never going to tell anyone of my past life again, but you have trusted me with so much, never even knowing who I truly was. And now the time has come where I must trust you, and I need to know that you are with me one hundred percent.”

Silence.

“Now, young heroes, are you with me?”

Akuma was the first to speak, his voice choppy. “How did you escape?”

Tao seemed surprised at his question but answered it politely. “Every single shadow creature is one because they must be, but somewhere deep inside of them is a flicker of hope which keeps them alive. They were all created because they tried to make a deal with Maliu, the goddess of death. Maliu, being herself, fooled each of them into trading their souls for their beloved,” she said, the deep pain in her eyes showing through.

“Why did you trade your soul?” I asked quietly.

She hesitated for a moment, before speaking, “my baby boy, Kahona. He was my light and joy after my husband died in the war, but war waits for no man, and it swallowed up my baby too,” she said, a single tear rolling down her cheek. There was a moment of absolute silence, not even the voices from the banquet could be heard for that perfect snapshot in time. “So I went to the temple of Maliu a broken woman, looking to get her sunshine back. I traded my soul for his, but it was too late. He was gone and I was the property of the shadows, as I was for years, more broken than the rest, my flicker of hope nothing more than one last ember. That is until I met your mother,” she said pointing to me. “Kindest soul I’ve ever met. Instead of hurting anyone, she would talk with me for hours, genuinely wanting to know more. She slowly began to grow the ember inside of me, until it was a roaring wildfire. On that day, she returned with your father and they helped me escape,” she said moving her finger to Akuma. “I owe my life to them, always have, always will. Now it is my honor to protect their children, the way I wish I could have with my own. So I ask you again, are you with me?”