Title: An Unforgettable Death
By: Verna
Chapter 2: Aisha
***
I looked around at this wall like thing of faces and memories with misty
images and solid slayers. Looking closely at one moving mist picture I
saw a faded slayer as well as the solid one. She was watching the
past. Not living it. I watched as the remembering slayer flinched as she
was hit over and over again by a strong man with much resemblance
to her. Her father? She felt the same pain now. Maybe not physically
but certainly mentally.
That was when I resolved that no matter what I could not end up like
this. I couldn't spend eternity like this with only haunting memories to
comfort me. I'd find a way home.
I tried to figure out where to go first. To see battle that raged on
between two great armies of Vampires or to the girl who stood atop a
tower ready to push the demon over the edge.
Just in front of me stood a girl who looked a few years younger than
myself. More along the lines of Dawn's age with long black hair and
slender arms. I reached out my own arm.
I felt myself being pulled forwards by an unseen force and I landed
hard on all fours on stone. Looking up I saw the girl but she paid me
no mind. It seemed as if she hadn't heard me crash behind her.
"Slayer?" I asked lamely. She turned around to look me up and down.
Seeming to approve, She nodded. "Yeah um, just for the record, Where
are we?"
Again with the looking to find fault. But then she smiled at me and
spread her arms wide. "Welcome to Atlantis", she said with a sweeping
motion.
I realized that she didn't say these words in English but I was able to
understand her perfectly as if I spoke the language. I assume that she'd
understood me the same way.
I stood up and brushed myself off while taking in my surroundings. I
stood on top of a pyramid with a huge gold alter behind me. On the
fool on which I stood I could see carvings depicting a boy having his
hands cut off by two very ugly demons with vividly pained red and
green skin. I guess it was some sort of relies thing and it was
mesmerizing to see the paint tears on the child's cheeks.
I shook my head and pulled up. I hadn't realized I was leaning over. I
looked around. The slayer next to me was also down below fighting a
very large group of vampires while the inhabitants of the city lay dead
and dieing.
"So, you were there when it sank huh?"
"Yes. The council sent me to kill the vampires who had taken over the
island. They killed my watcher."
"Mine's dead too." Wait! What? Giles wasn't dead! where the hell did
that come from?! The slayer must have understood for se replied.
"It happens. When those you left behind die, you know." She smiled
and extended her hand. "My name is Aisha."
"Buffy" For some reason the word sounded funny in my head and on
my tongue. It didn't sound right.
My eyes drifted back to the fight below me. Aisha was way
outnumbered but kept going. My mind raced with questions as I
watched the ancient slayer slay.
"So, how'd it happen? I mean..." I swept my arm in the direction of the
death and distraction. "I mean, how'd it sink? Do you know?"
"No. It just started to flood and then there was a huge fire that killed
all the vampires and then the walls gave out and crushed me. I don't
understand why. I've been remembering it over and over for centuries
but I can't figure out why it happened."
"Oh", I said. I wanted to ask more but She seemed to be studding the
events below as if she would be tested on it later. My eyes drifted back
to the Child-God at my feet.
To me it seemed as if the hyroghlphs morphed into the standard English
alphabet I'd known since childhood. It told the story of the prince
Ramito.
The story told of how he stole his father's best horses to go riding with
a peasant girl named Shayla. The king was not angry that he'd stolen
the horses or even that he'd been riding with some one of a lower
class. Shayla was killed when she fell from the horse and it rode over
her crushing every bone in her body. This angered the king because he
loved all his subjects. The boy's hands were cut off and as they did so,
he screamed a curse to the heavens that no one had understood. His
hands were placed in the alter that stood behind me and sealed in with
lots of gold never to be seen again.
Near by a scrap of paper lay. I picked it up. I told of how any
Vampire who drank from the body of any Atlantis citizen would possess
powers be on comprehension. So that was what brought all this about.
But still I could not help but think of the boy with his hands encased in
gold.
Aisha still stood transfixed by the scene below. She seemed to be
counting under her breath. For the third time my eyes fell on the
painted Child-God.
I kneeled down next to it and stroked it as if to brush the tears from
his eyes. I seemed to have no control over my action at that point.
Then the tears of dry paint became wet and soon turned to salt tears
like that of a normal child.
I heard a crash behind me and turned around to find that the alter
had cracked and laying a flat stone tray was the hands. Looking for all
the world like they'd only been sealed in there a few hours ago. With
the blood dry but still a bit sticky. I almost fell in my hasty retreat as I
saw one of the fingers twitch...
I stood up and whirled around to face the fight. Out of the waters
behind me I saw two wave grow in size and form themselves into two
hands. I looked back and the hands were floating on air and waving
in time with the giant waves. Then the hands crashed down and I
heard the crash of breaking water below.
It was just as Aisha had said. A few moments later a fire had begun
to roar throughout the city but the slayer kept fighting. The water and
the fires were weakening the walls and they began to crash and soon I
could not see a single moving thing below.
The scarp of paper blew off the pyramid and down to the fires but
Aisha stood still as stone. She didn't realize what I'd done.
Then it hit me, I did it. ME. I was scared. Like the time Faith had killed
that man. that was how I felt then. My hand shot out to rest on her
shoulder in an attempt to comfort her but then she turned on me with
hate in her eyes which made me pull my hand back and I found
myself outdo the memory. I looked around until I found Aisha's memory
again and saw that she had started at the beginning. Something told
me she'd have her eye on my insted of the fight this time...
***
Note: Yes, I did see the movie Atlantis recently but I had this idea
before I knew about the movie. (Yes, I do live under a rock) Feedback
is what makes the world go round! ;-)
By: Verna
Chapter 2: Aisha
***
I looked around at this wall like thing of faces and memories with misty
images and solid slayers. Looking closely at one moving mist picture I
saw a faded slayer as well as the solid one. She was watching the
past. Not living it. I watched as the remembering slayer flinched as she
was hit over and over again by a strong man with much resemblance
to her. Her father? She felt the same pain now. Maybe not physically
but certainly mentally.
That was when I resolved that no matter what I could not end up like
this. I couldn't spend eternity like this with only haunting memories to
comfort me. I'd find a way home.
I tried to figure out where to go first. To see battle that raged on
between two great armies of Vampires or to the girl who stood atop a
tower ready to push the demon over the edge.
Just in front of me stood a girl who looked a few years younger than
myself. More along the lines of Dawn's age with long black hair and
slender arms. I reached out my own arm.
I felt myself being pulled forwards by an unseen force and I landed
hard on all fours on stone. Looking up I saw the girl but she paid me
no mind. It seemed as if she hadn't heard me crash behind her.
"Slayer?" I asked lamely. She turned around to look me up and down.
Seeming to approve, She nodded. "Yeah um, just for the record, Where
are we?"
Again with the looking to find fault. But then she smiled at me and
spread her arms wide. "Welcome to Atlantis", she said with a sweeping
motion.
I realized that she didn't say these words in English but I was able to
understand her perfectly as if I spoke the language. I assume that she'd
understood me the same way.
I stood up and brushed myself off while taking in my surroundings. I
stood on top of a pyramid with a huge gold alter behind me. On the
fool on which I stood I could see carvings depicting a boy having his
hands cut off by two very ugly demons with vividly pained red and
green skin. I guess it was some sort of relies thing and it was
mesmerizing to see the paint tears on the child's cheeks.
I shook my head and pulled up. I hadn't realized I was leaning over. I
looked around. The slayer next to me was also down below fighting a
very large group of vampires while the inhabitants of the city lay dead
and dieing.
"So, you were there when it sank huh?"
"Yes. The council sent me to kill the vampires who had taken over the
island. They killed my watcher."
"Mine's dead too." Wait! What? Giles wasn't dead! where the hell did
that come from?! The slayer must have understood for se replied.
"It happens. When those you left behind die, you know." She smiled
and extended her hand. "My name is Aisha."
"Buffy" For some reason the word sounded funny in my head and on
my tongue. It didn't sound right.
My eyes drifted back to the fight below me. Aisha was way
outnumbered but kept going. My mind raced with questions as I
watched the ancient slayer slay.
"So, how'd it happen? I mean..." I swept my arm in the direction of the
death and distraction. "I mean, how'd it sink? Do you know?"
"No. It just started to flood and then there was a huge fire that killed
all the vampires and then the walls gave out and crushed me. I don't
understand why. I've been remembering it over and over for centuries
but I can't figure out why it happened."
"Oh", I said. I wanted to ask more but She seemed to be studding the
events below as if she would be tested on it later. My eyes drifted back
to the Child-God at my feet.
To me it seemed as if the hyroghlphs morphed into the standard English
alphabet I'd known since childhood. It told the story of the prince
Ramito.
The story told of how he stole his father's best horses to go riding with
a peasant girl named Shayla. The king was not angry that he'd stolen
the horses or even that he'd been riding with some one of a lower
class. Shayla was killed when she fell from the horse and it rode over
her crushing every bone in her body. This angered the king because he
loved all his subjects. The boy's hands were cut off and as they did so,
he screamed a curse to the heavens that no one had understood. His
hands were placed in the alter that stood behind me and sealed in with
lots of gold never to be seen again.
Near by a scrap of paper lay. I picked it up. I told of how any
Vampire who drank from the body of any Atlantis citizen would possess
powers be on comprehension. So that was what brought all this about.
But still I could not help but think of the boy with his hands encased in
gold.
Aisha still stood transfixed by the scene below. She seemed to be
counting under her breath. For the third time my eyes fell on the
painted Child-God.
I kneeled down next to it and stroked it as if to brush the tears from
his eyes. I seemed to have no control over my action at that point.
Then the tears of dry paint became wet and soon turned to salt tears
like that of a normal child.
I heard a crash behind me and turned around to find that the alter
had cracked and laying a flat stone tray was the hands. Looking for all
the world like they'd only been sealed in there a few hours ago. With
the blood dry but still a bit sticky. I almost fell in my hasty retreat as I
saw one of the fingers twitch...
I stood up and whirled around to face the fight. Out of the waters
behind me I saw two wave grow in size and form themselves into two
hands. I looked back and the hands were floating on air and waving
in time with the giant waves. Then the hands crashed down and I
heard the crash of breaking water below.
It was just as Aisha had said. A few moments later a fire had begun
to roar throughout the city but the slayer kept fighting. The water and
the fires were weakening the walls and they began to crash and soon I
could not see a single moving thing below.
The scarp of paper blew off the pyramid and down to the fires but
Aisha stood still as stone. She didn't realize what I'd done.
Then it hit me, I did it. ME. I was scared. Like the time Faith had killed
that man. that was how I felt then. My hand shot out to rest on her
shoulder in an attempt to comfort her but then she turned on me with
hate in her eyes which made me pull my hand back and I found
myself outdo the memory. I looked around until I found Aisha's memory
again and saw that she had started at the beginning. Something told
me she'd have her eye on my insted of the fight this time...
***
Note: Yes, I did see the movie Atlantis recently but I had this idea
before I knew about the movie. (Yes, I do live under a rock) Feedback
is what makes the world go round! ;-)