"Áve María, grátia pléna, Dóminus técum. Benedícta tu in muliéribus, et benedíctus frúctus véntris túi, Iésus. Sáncta María, Máter Déi, óra pro nóbis peccatóribus, nunc et in hóra mórtis nóstrae. Ámen." She clutched the Rosary tight, kneeling at the altar of the Cathedral tears streaming down her face. "Hail Mary, full of grace. Our Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen."

The darkness surrounded her the only feeling was that of the ice water falling from the clouds…her feet continuing to carry her into the city even though they were fatigued from running. She glanced over her shoulder, her eyes cold with fear…gazing into the abyssal night as if the antichrist himself was pursuing her. It seemed like days that she ran, until she collapsed in a heap in the road, her body numb from the chilling rain and the constant exertion. The beat of her heart pounding in her ears as she rolled over to try and recover her senses.

How long she lied there in the freezing rain was unknown to her, it felt like days…but it doesn't seem to matter. He had caught up to her. The man standing over her…his eyes filled with a demonic aura. She shuddered in fear… "I…Incubus!" she raised her hand and pointed at him timidly, too exhausted to resist. He defiled her in that night, the rain cascading down onto their bodies, she too weak to resist. One moment however, was burned into her memory for ever…

Her eyes met the demon's as he filled her womb with the demonic essence…
gazing deep into the shimmering bird shaped sigils in his eyes.
"Inherit!"
Then the demon fell…lifeless.

"Pater noster, quī es in caelis Sānctificētur nōmen tuum; Adveniat regnum tuum. Fīat voluntās tua Sīcut in caelō et in terrā Pānem nostrum cotīdiānum dā nōbīs hodiē. Et dīmittē nōbīs dēbita nostra, Sīcut et nōs dīmittimus dēbitōribus nostrīs. Et nē nōs indūcās in tentātiōnem; Sed līberā nōs ā malō. Amen." She placed the Rosary down. "Our Father, who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen."

She had confessed to her confessor…and they were to baptize the boy at birth to free him from the Devil's power. Months passed in the stone halls, the stone bones holding the halls of the Cathedral open, and everywhere she walked she felt the demon following her. It was as if he had stained her…become part of her. Everywhere she looked in the shadows she saw those horrible eyes…the shimmering bird following her, and every day she did rosaries and served the church hoping to rid the eyes from her mind. Nine months from that horrible day…she was purged of the evil within her.

The screams echoed all throughout the halls, she clawed at what fabric she had under her as her body arched in pain. Her body tensing and her loins burning, the slow and grievous labor took place. Many screaming hours later, the child spilled forth from the womb of the woman…and the priests immediately snatched the baby away. Sprinkling it with water the priests were to purge the demon from the baby. "I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit." After wrapping the baby and returning it to its mother…who was weakened and dying from the birth, they asked her to name the child. Myrddin. The name she uttered out weakly…before her frame fell limp…forever to sleep.

Life for young Myrddin was not easy, especially not in the village he was born in. They all knew he was the spawn of a demon, and most other children would not tolerate his presence. He spent most of his time in the library at the Cathedral, reading whatever literature he could. Despite his young age…having been born only seven years prior the young man had already developed an uncanny knowledge of Latin and the Anglo-Saxon tongue that was used around where he lived. It was this knowledge of Latin that he used to learn more and more, constantly buried in the dusty pages of the old library. He was the brightest boy in the Cathedral School, and many of the children and even some of the priests thought it was work by the devil…that the baptism had not purged him completely of it.

The turning point in Myrddin's early life was the fateful day when he discovered his "magic" roots. He was sitting in the grass next to the path out of the city into the mountains. He continued to draw the same shape in the dirt continuously. It was in all of dreams, all of his books…this bird shaped symbol that he didn't know what it meant. None of the priests could tell him, and they told him to ignore it. "There are many powers at work; the devil has his hand in this city. He brands his followers with a mark…the mark of the beast, so you must ignore this evil mark that appears in your dreams." He had heard other talk too…

"The boy seems to see far beyond his years. Perhaps he is a prophet, sent by God…a demon redeemed into an angel?"
"Such talk is dangerous. To attempt to understand the divine beyond what is revealed to you is close to heresy. Be mindful of such thoughts."
"Yes, Father."

What did they mean? Demon redeemed? What…am I? He drew the symbol into the dirt…and but he was completely engulfed in shadows. Hmm? Myrddin turned and looked up at the other boys who were looming over him, menace in their eyes. "Hey everyone, the witch boy is all alone! Let's get him!" A few of the boys had sticks and stones, and Myrrdin got up, scurrying to his feet and ran into the city, the other boys chasing him.

What did I do? Why am I being chased?! Why?! Why?! He frantically tried to find a place where he could hide, but he was never very athletic, and outrunning the boys was not going to work too well. In his blind running he had backed into a dead end, unable to move any further as the mob closed off the entrance to the alleyway. Our father, who art in heaven…
"Demon spawn…" The children said as they approached him...
Why?! WHY CAN'T I BE SOMEONE ELSE?! ANYONE ELSE!

He felt a strange power well up within him…the symbol he had seen in his dreams appearing in his mind and overwhelming his vision. It started to obscure his self image…and he saw the boys step back in fear. "I-it-its him! N-no that's impossible! He was killed…we all saw him be executed for heresy!" Myrddin was utterly confused. "What are you talking about?"
"G-get away!" They all turned and ran from him. He wandered around the city some people greeting him, others running in fear. Catching sight of his reflection in one of the puddles from the recent rain he began to worry. My eye…what happened to my eye? This…this is the mark of the beast! I AM a demon! I don't want to be a demon! I just want to be me! Strangely, at that thought, the sigil in his eye faded and the people were treating him like normal again. He now knew he had a power…a magic power, the power to not be himself.

Geass.