Chapter 3: The Fall

When Karma strikes...

She watched the clouds above her, she could see the dark colors seeping in and spreading through, like a cotton soaking ink. It finally began with a gust of wind and a flurry of dried leaves and twigs. She closed her eyes, lowered her head towards the earth and held both her arms before her creating a shield. She could only hear and feel the strikingly cold waft. It grew stronger and faster by the minute. The wind gushed through time along with her.

Then a deafening noise struck her ears. The same thunder that once gave her the thrills, now made her shudder. The lightning that brightened the night, was nothing but blinding to her eyes. The open field left no shelter above her head. With no protection anymore she felt naked and vulnerable.

The first drop of rain fell on her then opened palm. She stood up and looked to the sky as if waiting for something from above. She watched the droplets of water falling out of nowhere and heading straight down her face. She continued to stare at the sky until it got heavier. She used to love the squalls of driving rain, it had always been a friend but today... foe. She shut her eyes tight and stood there in the heart of the storm for hours tormented more by her own thoughts than the trivial bringing of the rain.

Trying to gather some courage she thought of some powerful words. "Have some faith. Build some trust. This will be over soon." But those words, stayed words and meant nothing more.

There was a sudden silence around her. She opened her eyes when there were no more what normally would have been blessings from heaven only to see a scud of mist. The mist brought silence with it. She was hoping for the silence after all the thunder. She had silently wished for it for once she was told that silence was golden.

"Gold... fake beauty" she thought to her self. It was melted into beautiful objects that took the limelight and hid the truth. It was silver that built her armor. The only reminder of her armor that she had left on her now was three pieces of silver. The silver around her neck was a reminder of her own strength and persistence. The silver ring on her finger symbolized her independence. The last piece of silver was a gift from the knight, a lesson of faith, trust, love and passion. Passion was familiar to her but the other three was something she still was yet to fully understand.

The mist was worse than the rain. The rain reminded her of beautiful memories. And the mist with its silence made her see its transience. To have something so beautiful, that it hurt to imagine it all be gone, following the natural path of entropy. The thought of losing everything that she was revived with was painful. A pain that no words could justify beyond any reasonable doubt. It was at this moment she had an epiphany... "Selflessness". She swore that she would accept the gifts of life even if it brought her this pain. She reminded herself, "Immense pain will give me the luxury of tremendous happiness"

All of it brought forth a whiff of hollowness. The wounds that she previously bore in numbness, had altogether opened the gates of excruciating agony. She could feel herself re-living every sword that slashed through her skin. For the first time in her entire life she felt repentance. "Karma" she said, it was something she truly believed in. She wished she was numb again, she wished it just all went away. She wished she had just fallen into slumber, so she could sleep away the pain. But the storm didn't leave any room for rest. She knew she had to go through this since going back in time would only bring her back to this very moment.

Time slowed to a considerable halt, with every second feeling like minutes. She closed her eyes again and consciously embraced the pain.