Astra and Nyx sat in their mother's staged chamber, the plush couch cushions sagging under their weight as they curled up at their mother's feet. Beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows, the city's usual hellish life continued. Almost like it was on Earth, if you ignored the lava and the red sky and the sins written on the foreheads of souls.
- Mom, have you ever been scared? Astra asked, tilting her head up to meet her mother's gaze.
At an impressive ten feet tall, Zuma's chitin-encased form loomed over them, the flat panel obscuring her face a reminder of her inhuman nature.
Zuma's lips curved into a crooked smile.
- Astro, you'd be surprised how much fear can motivate people. No, that's not entirely true. I've just learned to channel my fear into something more productive.
From her spot on the couch, Nyx spoke.
- I can't imagine you being scared of anything, Mom. You're the Queen of Hell! Nothing can hurt you!
- Oh, my little one... Zuma chuckled softly, reaching out to caress Nyx's white hair... It is never wise to underestimate the things that scare us. Fear is what keeps us on our toes, what pushes us to become stronger than you ever thought possible.
- You never told us what it was like...up there... Astra began softly, knowing that her mother would only reveal so much...When you were human, or a demon with dormant powers, did anything ever truly scare you?
Zuma's gaze drifted away as she leaned back, her claws tapping the armrest in rhythm. When she spoke, her voice was soft, as if sharing a long-forgotten memory.
- The last time I remember being truly scared was about ten years ago, when I was still alive as Zuma the human, not Zuma the queen. I worked security at a hospital in the city. I lived in a small air raid shelter under the hospital. On this particular day, my friend Oksana and I decided to take a walk downtown. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, it was a beautiful day. She paused, letting the vivid image settle into their minds before continuing.
- And then the air raid sirens began to wail. At first, people were confused, shifting around uneasily. But as the sirens continued to go off, fear began to set in. The first to break was an old woman, hobbling frantically toward the underpass. That was when panic truly took hold.
Astra and Nyx exchanged worried glances.
- Drivers slammed on their brakes, causing collisions and chaos on the streets. A traffic police car pulled up, and officers jumped out to herd people toward the subway entrances. It was as if a switch had been flipped, and the façade of human kindness had vanished in an instant. Everywhere I looked, people were trampling over each other to reach shelter.
Nyx spun uncomfortably, instinctively moving closer to Astra. Even at the ripe old age of fifty, the thought of such human cruelty unsettled her.
- I tried to call Oksana, but the lines were jammed. That's when I saw it. A man pulling an unconscious girl out of the crowd. I thought at first he was trying to save her. But then he... ripped off her clothes and... raped her there, on the grass. Something inside me snapped.
A muscle in Zuma's jaw twitched as she recalled the brutal scene.
- I beat that man until my hands throbbed with pain. But in that moment, I didn't care. All that mattered was that he pay for what he had done.
She swallowed hard, her voice thickening with emotion as she continued.
- I was looking for Oksana, desperate to find her. I caught a glimpse of her, her eyes wild with fear as she ran toward me. And then...and then the crowd swallowed her. They dragged her across the asphalt, trampled her underfoot. I'll never forget the sound of her screams...
Astra felt hot tears prick the corners of her eyes, and her heart ached for the friend her mother had lost. Nyx, sensing her unease, reached out to grip Astra's tightly.
- A blinding flash of light rang out from somewhere in the distance. It was so bright that anyone looking directly at it clutched at their faces in agony, writhing and whimpering. And in that moment I felt a terror so deep, so all-consuming, that it drove out every other thought. I forgot my duty, my humanity. All I could think about was saving my own skin.
Zuma's claws flexed, hard enough to dent the soft leather of the armrests.
- I returned to the hospital, passing the hordes of people approaching the subway. I had been so focused on my own survival that it had never occurred to me that I could have saved some of them. I ran down to the shelter, closed the partition. Upstairs it's roaring, everything is shaking, Plaster is falling from the walls. And I'm lying on the floor and I can't stop crying...
She took a shuddering breath, her golden eyes gleaming with a hint of shame.
- It was a missile attack. That was what I truly feared that day. Not the violence, the animal cruelty of humanity. But the cold, efficient destruction of war. And in my fear, I abandoned everything I had once sworn to protect.
As Zuma finished his story, a heavy silence fell over the room. Astra and Nyx sat frozen, unblinking, struggling with the sheer terror their mother had experienced.
Finally, Astra cleared her throat, her voice soft and uncertain.
- We understand you, mother. We understand now why you fought so hard to make Hell a sanctuary, to create a place where no one would ever have to experience this kind of terror again.
Nyx nodded vigorously in agreement, her purple-gold eyes shining with unshed tears.
- You did what you had to do to survive. We can't imagine how terrifying that must have been for you.
Slowly, Zuma rose from her seat, straightening to her full, impressive height. She reached up to cup her daughters' faces in her massive hands, careful not to puncture their delicate skin with her claws.
- Oh, my brave girls. Your compassion and understanding mean more to me than you know. Let this be a lesson to both of you, never let fear control you. What you do in the face of fear defines who you become.
Astra and Nyx leaned into their mother's touch, feeling the warmth of her chitin on their cheeks. And in that moment, they knew that no matter what horrors the world might hold, they would always have each other. As long as they stood together, they could weather any storm.