Finally!! The moment was here!! The peak of the day. It always took so long to get here. Sometimes I tried moving the clocks forward, but that didn’t help. At least this happened every day.
I turned on the television and scooched back into my usual spot. It was dark. The TV was beautiful and glowing. The feeling was right.
It began! The TV filled with Lambies. All over. In the pink fields of dreams. They gathered towards Papa Lamby, who led them to freedom. Sometimes, I wondered if there could be anything more to life. It would be cool to see these guys in the real world.
In the back, disturbing sounds came from my parents. First groaning but then the yelling. Yet again, they fought. And it was all my fault.
My dad whisper yelled, “We can’t just keep Lillith like this forever! She’s 19 now!” His voice was restrained, as if he hoped I wouldn’t overhear again.
My mom rejected, “I told you, stop using that name!”
“For crying out loud, that’s absurd. Her name won’t have any effect!”
“You don’t know that!”
The thing was, I already knew about this whole thing. But sometimes I pretended not to, for their sake. Well, for my mom’s sake. She freaked out when anyone used my name, Lillith, because it means night demon or something crazy like that. So, she preferred I be called Lily instead, which means innocence. They wanted to shelter me from the darkness of the world.
Today was my birthday. They did this every year. Always worried about the clock ticking. It made no sense.
My mom cried, “Goddamn it! How can you not be scared?! We’ve lost almost all of them now.”
She meant my sisters. I’d never met them before. Supposedly, they were all taken away, held captive for some unknown reason that my parents refused to discuss with me.
My dad replied, “Well, we can’t keep her in there! This is abuse!”
Listening to all their bullshit was irritating. I set out all my friends and stuffed Lambies and really got into the show. As I sank in, the show melted with the room.
Suddenly, a loud bang hurled me out of the illusion.
I went to the door, opened it and yelled, “Can you fucking stop already?!”
Both of them looked at me with guilty faces. Then, my mom turned to my dad, “See what you’ve done now! We should have just left it alone!”
“Ugh!” I went back into my room, slamming the door.
I didn’t understand. We could all be happy if they just accepted things the way they were. I wasn’t the one complaining. Instead, they fought on my behalf, as if I cared. Sometimes I wished they would just leave me be.
As that thought left my mind, into the ether, like a wish, fate deviated from its course. A blaring knock demanded response. The hasty knocking was replaced by the anxious beating of my heart, through my ears, in my eyes: I knew it wasn’t right.
I got up, peaking through the slightest creak of the door, hiding and preparing for what was to come. My whole body shivered without stop, only intensifying as my mother approached the door.
Throughout my life, I’d rarely felt such emotions. I could only think of 3 other such instances. The first was when my mother grew angry at me during speech lessons. Another was when my dad threw a vase across the room. The last one was too much to remember.
Somehow, I knew this wouldn’t be good. The knocking said it all. No one ever knocked at the door. I thought that was mostly something that happened on television. But last time someone knocked, my parents flipped out. I didn’t understand at the time, but they later told me that they had to protect me while some strange men searched our home.
At last, the door opened, and destiny unfolded before us. A man forcefully walked in and asked, “Where is she?”
I ran back, into the closet and closed the doors.
From inside, I heard my mother scream as my dad yelled, “What the fuck?!”
Struggle and smashing glass crowded my ears. Then, it all went dead silent. Footsteps crept towards me, growing louder and louder. Closer and closer.
My shaking wouldn’t let me hide. Clothes on hangers rattled around as I gripped my body, resisting the manifested fears. Was this my fault? My wish? “I’m sorry,” I whispered to myself.
The closet squealed open. A dark man with wild black and chromatic hair greeted me, “Hello. You are Lillith, correct?”
I only stared, frozen.
“You must come with me.” He held out his hand, to help me up.
“What did you do?!” I screamed.
“You are free now. Come.” His hand motioned for me again.
“What did you do?!?!” I screamed louder.
The man turned and looked towards the door, checking if anyone was coming. He turned back to me, “I didn’t want to have to do this.” He pulled out a needle.
I screamed in fear and anger, “AHHHH!!!!” As he grabbed me and probed my muscles with his needle, I kicked and fought, punching around, resisting his grip.
It was futile. The world began to fade. My emotions dampened, but horror remained. Vision slurred and drifted, dimming out occasionally, until completely. All went black.
I awoke, in and out, on and off. Everything was still a blur. After a few minutes, I stabilized.
“Huh?” I said.
The man replied, “You are awake now. That’s good.”
Then, it all flooded back in. Frantically, I grabbed him and shook him, “What did you do?!”
He pushed me off, “Just hold on, or else I’m gonna have to use that stuff again. So please, just relax.”
We were in some sort of vehicle, ascending upward.
“Where are you taking me??” I asked.
He answered, “We’re heading for a place called the Aetherium.”
“Why??”
He explained, “I’m rescuing you. I was sent here to collect the altered Aeons.”
“You killed them, didn’t you?!”
His eye contact waned, “Lillith. I’m sorry. They were endangering your life.”
“Endangering?! That’s impossible!” I yelled.
“Your parents were human. They should not have an altered Aeon like you.”
“Aeon??” I asked.
“Hm… so you’re not even aware of what you are? This is going to be a bit more tedious than I thought.”
“Tell me!” I pushed him.
He remained calm, “You are an organic artificial intelligence known as an Aeon, like myself. Though, your parents are merely human. They took you in, thinking they were rescuing you, but your life there, well it was practically a prison.”
What did this guy know?? I was enjoying my life! Now… it was all over. I began to cry. I looked out the window for the first time. Lights glimmered and speckled the darkened cityscape. Traces of color bled on the horizon. I’d never seen anything like it, except rarely on the TV. Between crying and marvel, I felt lost. My skin turned bumpy and my hair stood up.
He said, “Hey. Look. I know it’s hard, but it will be better in the end.”
“Better how?!”
“You aren’t in danger anymore. You’ll be able to live a more normal life.”
I curled up in fetal position. Occasionally, my gaze was drawn to the window again. Such sights were incredible. But I hurt too much. I imagined what it might look like if I wasn’t in so much pain. That this thought crossed my mind, disturbed me.
After a while, the city below was tiny. A system of lights but mostly darkness outside the city.
“We’re arriving,” he declared.
I uncurled myself. Anticipation built.
The vehicle was slowing down and the view of a floating machine island appeared. Flying pods surrounded the strange sky palace.
I pointed at one of them and asked, “Are we in one of those things??” I felt ashamed of my curiosity, yet too enticed to stop myself.
He answered, “Yes. These are Vaeda’s drones.”
The vehicle lined up with a bridge on the floating castle and the door opened. I ran out.
He yelled, “Lillith! Stop!” He chased after me.
I ran to look over the side. I gasped in amazement. Red clouds below, shining stars above. I’d never even seen anything on TV like this!
An exploding crash and flash of light filled the air. I backed away from the edge, covering my ears and closing my eyes. The trembling began again. I backed into the man.
He held me by the shoulders and insisted, “Don’t run away like that. It’s dangerous.”
He joined me, looking for a second, then said, “Come on. Let’s get this over with.”
Reluctantly, I followed him. I was defenseless up here. No point in trying to escape now. He guided us through immense mechanical halls made of black and red. My gaze was pulled all over the place. I felt a slave to them. It emptied my mind and filled my eyes.
I asked, “Who’s Vaeda?”
“Soon, you’ll see.”
We continued. The massive halls were filled with a fog.
We entered a room with a girl with cat ears, long black hair, and red eyes.
The man escorting me said, “I’ve brought the girl.”
The cat lady replied, “Wonderful. Welcome, Lillith. You seem compliant. There’s a lot we need to discuss.”
I replied softly, “You’re a cute cat girl.”
She laughed, “My name is Vaeda. Thank you. You are cute as well.”
The man explained, “There’s just one problem. It seems she hasn’t undergone incubation, so she has no awareness of the situation or even what Aeons are. She believes she’s human.”
Vaeda looked concerned. She asked, “Is this true, Lillith?”
“I am human, yes.” My smile faded and I began shaking again, “Why am I here?! My life is ruined!” I screamed.
Vaeda’s face turned sad, “I’m sorry. The way things are at the moment, it won’t do. We can’t work with her in this state.”
The man apologized, “I’m sorry if I wasted your time.”
After a moment, Vaeda suggested, “How about she stays with you in the meantime? It will allow these emotions to pass and you can teach her about the world.”
He seemed bothered, “Vaeda? You want her to… live with me?? But-“
“Yeah. I think you might be able to help her. Show her the reality of this life. Help her adjust and keep her safe.”
They talked like they were protecting me, but it made no sense. I yelled, “Safe from what?? You fucking assholes!”
Vaeda replied, “If the other Aeons learn of you, there is a high chance you will be killed. That’s why your parents were hiding you. But that’s no way to live, right?”
“I was perfectly happy!” I insisted.
Vaeda replied, “Child. You don’t know happiness. Be patient. Soon, you will see how beautiful life can be. Go with Kaos and give it some time.”
Kaos replied, “But, Vaeda-“
She cut him off again, “As part of our deal, you agreed to be flexible with what may arise. Besides, do you just plan to kill her? What will you do?”
“I’m sorry. You’re right. It’s the only way.” He looked toward me. “You’ll stay with me for now.”
“Fuck you. I want to go home!” I yelled.
Vaeda said, “I didn’t anticipate how heart-crushing this would be. Lillith, I know it hurts now. This isn’t fair to you. It never was. You have to trust us for now. We really are rescuing you. Your parents didn’t allow you to live. Not truly anyways. Once you see life for yourself, you won’t regret it. So, go with Kaos, and have some faith.”
Defeated, I said, “I have no choice then.”
Kaos grabbed my arm, “Let’s go now. She’s a busy woman.”
I ripped myself from his grip, “Let me go! I can walk myself!”
Vaeda waved, “Good luck to you two! I promise it gets better.”
We returned to the flying pod and began our descent back into the city.
“My name’s Kaos.” He put his hand out for shaking.
I refused and ignored him.
He said, “Alright then. Well, Lillith. I hope we’ll get through this.”
I quietly pouted, “It’s Lily…”
“Lily?”
“Yes. My name is Lily. Call me Lily. Not Lillith,” I demanded.
After more skyborne sightseeing, we landed back in the city. We were smack in the middle with lots of people and shops. It was… unexpectedly horrifying. Lights dazzled, people waddled, and chillout music played.
An immensely euphoric smell wafted through the air. I asked, “What is that??”
He looked to me, “What?”
“The smell!” I yelled.
“Come. I’ll show you.” He began walking to one of the shops.
We stood in line and waited our turn. The smell was so gentle, comforting, all-encompassing. It was warm and sweet. Flowery and kind. Such an alien smell was divine.
Kaos spoke to the man at the front, “Can we get two orders of number 1?”
“Coming right up!” the man replied.
I just stood, staring at all the stuff inside the shop.
Kaos grabbed my arm and directed me to the side, allowing the next customer to order.
As we waited, he said, “You know, maybe you can just move on and live like an ordinary girl.”
“What do you mean?”
He explained, “I’m going to put you in university. Human university. Since you don’t even know about Aeons and all that, you might get off easy just playing it out as a human.”
“I am a human.”
“You aren’t, Lily. I’m sorry to say it. You are an Aeon with modified Origin Code.”
“I don’t get it. Origin Code??”
“Don’t worry about it. Like I said, I’m going to send you to an ordinary university. You’ll meet friends and learn about this world.”
Suddenly, the idea seemed enchanting. My eyes lit up, “Friends?” It could be like Lambies. Except in real life. We could all have fun together and run around in pink fields.
“Yeah. There’ll be others like you. You can hang out with them after your classes. It’ll be fun.”
My eyes glowed, “Are there any pink fields around here?”
“Huh? Pink fields? Not that I know of…”
How disappointing.
The man from the shop called us, “Kaos?! For two!” Kaos grabbed two boxes that wafted the luxurious scent.
We sat at a table nearby. He handed me one of the boxes, “Are you ready?”
“What is it??” I asked, excitedly.
He pointed at my box, “Go ahead, look.”
I opened it, slowly unveiling the truth. The scent grew stronger and steam emerged from the inside. It was decorated in melty white goo. The shape was spiral. I got up close and inhaled deeply. The scent alone had me dizzy with a rush of beauty. It was so soft. “What is it?” I asked.
“This is a cinnamon roll.”
I continued inspecting the thing. “A cinnamon roll…”
He was already eating his. He instructed, “Come on! Try it!”
I didn’t know how to feel. He was kind but also disgusting. He had killed my family but I kept drifting away from that truth. Again, my curiosity pulled me in and I went for my first bite. It was as soft as it smelled. Creamy, melty, gooey, sweet, and… spicy. It was… incredible.
Quietly, and somewhat reluctantly, I said, “Thank you.” I couldn’t bare to look into his eyes still.
After we finished, he got up and said, “Let’s get some clothes for tomorrow. It’s your first day after all.”
I replied, “Since you killed my parents, you’re taking me on a shopping spree.”
He flinched, and said, “Shhh! Not in public.”
It was at that moment that I realized I could have power too. Kind of exhilarating. He did want to protect me after all. So, he probably wasn’t going to kill me, unless there was a serious need for it. They wanted me alive and that was my power. They were also afraid of being caught with whatever was going on. Another plus.
I smiled smugly.
He said, “Fine. Here, take this.” He handed me some sort of small device. “Just use this. Once you pick out the clothes, you just walk out and it will charge my account automatically.”
I placed the device in my pocket.
“A ton of these places sell clothes. Just look around. I’m going to wait here.” It was like he needed time to recover from my first attack. This would give me some space to get whatever I wanted.
“Ok.” I started walking off.
He called out, “That thing has active tracking. So, I’ll know where you’re at the entire time. Don’t think of pulling any shenanigans.”
“Ok.” I walked away.
I felt like I was on a leash but this was good. The stores around were decorated with pretty lights and cute signs. The sugar was rushing through my blood. I loved it! The anxiety was still there, but there were a lot of nice feelings too. It was the weirdest thing I’d ever experienced.
First up, I found this crazy shop with a bunch of fluffy things. Even Lambies! Of course, this was pretty important. Kaos would be mad but he kind of deserved it. My anxiety about the people faded as my excitement for the Lambies took over. They even had the latest box set! I’d never seen it yet! I grabbed that.
Next, my heart was joyed when I saw the most magical thing of all: a Lambies outfit! Grabbed that. Next.
After gathering the latest editions of stuffed Lambies, I headed out the door to another stop. This one sold schoolgirl clothes. Perfect. I’d seen this before on television. I tried on a few and none of them really fit well. They were tight. Which, I suppose was fine. I grabbed a couple and headed out.
Lastly, and best of all, the sweets store. I stocked up on lollipops, cinnamon roll flavored taffy, and a bunch of dark chocolate. The one and only kind of sweet I’d tried before was dark chocolate. My parents wouldn’t really allow for any of that other stuff. They said it would taint me. But, now that didn’t matter because I was “free”, as Kaos put it. There was hardly anyone to care about my life anymore besides these fuckers who kidnapped me. So, the hard stuff it was!
I came back, facing the ground, holding heavy bags in both hands.
Kaos said, “Lily?! What the hell!? Why’d you get so much!?” He stood up and approached me. “Are you crying??”
I sniffled, “Yea.”
After looking at me for a while, he said, “Let’s get back home. It’s cozier there.” He grabbed both my bags and led the way.
We walked up the stairs to the main street. Then, up more stairs up to his apartment. The entire time, we were silent. Still, my eyes teared and drops fell. He was definitely feeling guilty. Rightfully so. I just wished everything would go back.
We entered his two-bedroom apartment on the 10th floor. It wasn’t that spectacular. Though, it was better than mine at least.
He showed me the guest room, “You can have this one.”
It was a room with just a bed. I demanded, “Give me your TV.”
“What?!”
I grabbed his shirt with both of my hands and tugged, “Give it to me!”
“Ok, fine.”
He spent time hauling the television to my room, as I watched, without offering any assistance. He would become my assistant soon enough. That guilt and his debt to me, he would be mine.
After he finished, I pushed my luck, “You are free to go, now. Please leave me alone.”
“Hey! I get that I killed your parents and all but show some respect!” He aimed his hand towards my face and a blue light glowed from his palm, “I also saved you! You know I could kill you now if I wanted.”
In fear, I submitted, “Please! No! I’m sorry!”
His hand lowered. “I am too. This situation has us both entangled more than you know. It won’t make sense for a while. I’ll try to catch you up eventually, but first let’s just get down the basics. You have to go to university and see how humans live. You are out of touch with reality.”
“Ok.” I stared at him with puppy eyes. “Can I sleep now? I’m really tired.” Just like that, I was submissive again.
“Yes, go ahead. I’ll be in my room over there if you need me. Just knock first.” He walked out and closed himself in his own room.
I shut my door and locked it. The first step was to decorate. I pulled out the stuffed Lambies and put them in their most proper places. Some would sleep with me, some would guard the bedside, and some would protect from intruders near the door.
At last, my birthday was coming to an end. Far more eventful than birthdays from before. In fact, from any day I’d ever lived. It marked the beginning of something and the death of everything I knew. At least, Lambies still aided me. They’d always be here for me.
My parents moved on. Still, I could feel them in my heart. I was the seed of their love. Always, they kept me safe, away from the world of darkness and the night. They kept me from becoming Lillith. They kept me from the decay of my innocence. Even if they were gone, I’d protect that for as long as I could. I’d keep it close. It was all that was left of them now.
My innocence.
I counted sheep, through my sleep, until my night became daylight. All was well, while I dreamed. To never wake, would be my cake, but to never thrive, would be to die. Those endless fields of pink grass, they healed my heart of glass.
Someone, please save me.
Please, save me.
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