A little girl, no older than six, ran through the woods, giggling to herself. The sun was starting to set, and she knew she had to be home before it was gone. Her papa would get upset and her mama would worry about her if she didn’t return home on time. She also wanted to put the flowers she picked next to her new baby brother. Hopefully her mama had a vase or something that could hold them.

She saw her home in view and ran faster, seeing her father sharpening his axe. When he saw her, he put the axe down and laughed as she ran up to hug him. “My goodness, you’re all dirty from running around in the forest,” he said, picking some leaves out of her tangled hair. “I see you picked some flowers. Are those for your new baby brother?”

The little girl nodded, her eyes shining brightly in excitement as she held them up so he could see them. “Yes, Papa! Do you think Mama has something we can put them in? I want to put them next to the crib!” She looked up at him, tilting her head to the side curiously as she noticed something different about her father’s dark brown eyes. “Papa, why are your eyes so red?”

He chuckled as he rubbed the back of his hand over them. “No reason. Why don’t you go inside and show your mother the flowers you picked out? I’m sure she’ll love them. I’m going to finish sharpening my axe.”

She ran inside the house, seeing only a single lantern lit in the hallway as she entered. “Mama! I got some flowers!” she yelled excitedly, running to the kitchen. She saw the cooking pot had some stew in it and was lightly bubbling as it hung near the fireplace. The flames weren’t too strong, but strong enough to feel the heat and light up the kitchen. Her mother wasn’t anywhere to be seen. She heard a baby’s cry come from upstairs. Her new baby brother must’ve woken up, and she could hear her mother’s soft, gentle voice singing a soothing lullaby to calm the baby’s cries. She ran upstairs to her brother’s room, excited to show her mother the flowers.

When she reached the room, she opened the door the crying and singing stopped. Her mother was standing next to the crib in the middle of the room, holding her baby brother. “Mama?” the little girl called out quietly, not wanting to make her brother start crying again. “I got some flowers.”

“Did you now?” her mother asked as she rocked the baby, not looking at her. “Here come carry your brother while I look for something to put them in. I’m sure he’ll love having something nice to look at.”

She walked over and put the flowers down in the crib then took her baby brother into her arms. “Don’t worry, I can carry him while you go downstairs. I’m a strong girl!” she said, smiling brightly at her mother. She couldn’t really see her mother’s face too well since the setting sun made the room a little dark and her mother’s midnight blue hair fell over her shoulders, covering most of her face.

The older woman laughed. “I know you are, sweetie. You’re the strongest girl in the world.”

The little girl giggled then looked down at her brother. Her breath hitched as she didn’t see his small chubby face like she expected but saw a charred skull looking back at her. She dropped what was supposed to be the swaddled baby, watching the skull break as it hit the floor. The light green blanket unraveled and showed the broken bones with it. “M-Mama! W-What happened to-”

“Now, look what you did,” her mother sneered as she knelt next to the fallen blanket. “You know you’re supposed to be careful with your brother. You’re not supposed to drop him, silly.”

“M-Mama…?” she called out quietly, reaching out to her. As soon as her hand touched her mom’s shoulder, she screamed as her mother looked up at her. Instead of seeing her mother’s light-tan skin and beautiful sapphire blue eyes, a pale gaunt face with eyes as black as coal stared back at her. The little girl screamed and ran to the door, only to see her father standing there with his axe in hand. “P-Papa!”

He didn’t say anything and looked at her with a blank expression. “You don’t remember do you?”

Remember what? What did he mean? She shook her head as she backed away from him. “Remember what, Papa?”

“I knew we should’ve left you in the forest that day, but your mother insisted we don’t abandon you. If we had left you…” he said, lifting his axe. His tan skin turned pale as it became skeletal and deathlike. “We would be alive!” He swung his axe at her.

She yelped as she fell to the floor and backed away from him. Her back hit something and she looked up to see her mother’s terrifying face looking down at her. She screamed as her mother grabbed her hair and pulled her up by it. “You did to us! It’s all your fault that we’re all dead!” she screeched.

The room erupted into flames as her mother threw her across the room. She hit the cradle and landed next to her baby brother’s blanket and bones. She looked up at her parents, seeing that her father’s face now looked the same as her mother’s. “I-I don’t understand…why?” she asked them, tears streaming down her face.

“Because you killed us,” her mother said in an eerily calm voice. “You think you’re safe because you’re alive and well. You think you’re safe because we’re dead!?” She reached down and grabbed her little face, her sharp nails digging into her cheek. “You’re not safe, ‘my child.’ You’re a plague on the world!”

Her father looked down at her with his black eyes as tears of blood ran down his pale, gaunt face. “You were meant to end the world. Your eyes…they showed that you’re cursed. You started with us. Burning your brother alive. Stabbing your mother in the back…,” he snarled at her. “And me…you cut my throat and watched me bleed to death!”

She shook her head, backing away from them. “N-No! I-I wouldn’t do that!” she stuttered desperately. “F-Father, please! I-” She brought her knees up to her chin, lowering her head as she covered her ears, and screamed in anguish.

“STOP!!!”

“But you’re the one who killed them…”

She opened her eyes and looked up, not seeing her family or the burning house around. Now she was…nowhere. She stood up and looked around, seeing nothing but darkness surrounding her. “Papa? Mama?”

“They’re gone…”

She turned around seeing, a cloaked figure standing there. “W-Who are you?”

“You wanted them dead,” the figure said, ignoring her question. “Your parents believed you were cursed. The animals in the area they found you in were dead. The plants around you died. A skeleton was found next to your body. They thought you cursed them and your baby brother. He cried every time they picked him up but was happy whenever you held him. They thought you bewitched him. That’s why they burned him alive. You killed them for doing that.” The cloaked figure grabbed her throat, making her gasp. Her eyes widened as the hood of the cloak fell, and she saw herself with rainbow pupils with black sclera surrounding them, and an evil smile on her lips. “They were right about you being cursed. Child of Destruction. The end of the world is closer now. You’ll be the one to destroy everything in it. Accept your destiny and fulfill His will...” 

Fire suddenly surrounded them, and the figure disappeared, causing her to fall to the floor. She could feel her skin burning from the heat of the flames and felt like something in her body was trying to come out. Streaks of black started moving under her skin and slowly crept up her arms. In the distance, she could hear a baby crying and screaming. The little girl looked up and saw her swaddled brother squirming as the flames covered his body.

She screamed.

`~`~`~`

A young woman gasped as she woke up. She looked around her room, seeing that it was only her in there. The full moon shone brightly through the window next to her bed. She looked outside, seeing the trees swaying gently from the wind.

She heard the baby next to her start whimpering and she picked the young male up. “Shh, it’s okay,” she said soothingly. She held the baby close and started singing a soothing lullaby. The baby boy started to calm down and the woman laid him gently on the bed, lying next to him. She made sure the light green blanket covered the baby properly. “There’s nothing to be afraid of. I’ll protect you from anything.” She ran her finger over the jar, looking at the ashes and the charred bones that were still intact.

“No one will ever harm you again, little brother...”