The Cursed Boon of the Mate

The ground was set to witness the epic battle for dominance. The sky was lit with thunderous lightning and the rains poured mercilessly. The three dimensions were ruled by three different powers in an unsaid agreement of not encroaching on each other’s territory. But the ancestors who made the rules did not exist anymore and the respective leaders were power hungry. Each clan wanted supremacy over the planet and establish a single monarchy to rule for eternity.   So, the battle zone was decided as the center of Earth. The forces started assembling. The vampires appeared suddenly as they could run faster than the wind and jump higher than a slingshot. The shapeshifters dropped down from the sky as various birds or swam to the banks as fish or other sea-borne creatures, some even growled as wolves. The witches, clad in whatever nature provided, tree leaves, dead animal skin, roots, were the only clan who used their powers for fairer means and not to ease their troubles, and hence, they walked to the predetermined point with their Staffs and Talismans that channeled their magic.   The total forces from each clan numbered to thousands and the night would decide the fate of each clan. Each was ready to establish dominion. The vampires grunted and attempted to intimidate the other two clans with their tall postures, display of sniggering blood-sucking fangs, and eyes glassy with bloodlust. They knew they could be killed only if their heart was excised out of the body. The shapeshifters were a variety of creatures, each maintaining the avatar according to their power, quality, strength, or characteristic. Each maintained its strongest form as they could be killed only by decapitation. The witches were deemed as the most powerful among the three as they would wield the power of the Universe. But during the tête-à-tête with the Almighty, they had agreed to a fair fight using magic only to win the war. They could only be killed if their connection was broken, any object that channeled their power was destroyed.   The leaders stepped forward from their clan and met at the vertex of the triangle etched in the ground that was once considered sacred and each clan worshipped it as the pinnacle of the power of the planet that each living being could draw from. But it also meant that whoever had complete control would rule the entire planet and Universe and subdue the others.   “We have to establish battle rules,” declared the witch leader Istvan.   “The vampires should not be back-stabbed. You remove our hearts only from the front”. The first rule was set by the tallest vampire leader Zachariah clad in midnight black flowing robes, who towered over the other two and tried to safeguard the lives of his clan as vampires were invincible in a face-to-face combat. Their supreme strength and unnatural speed were their advantages.   The treacherous shapeshifter leader, Heimerich, in the wolf form doned a face that could converse in a common language, not leaving the witch to decipher his grunts and growls to the others. “I will agree if you swear to not decapitate us,” he snarled.   Zachariah responded by baring his fangs and before a brawl ensued, Istvan, intervened. “But if you cannot be decapitated, you cannot be killed!”   “Exactly my point,” shrugged Heimerich.   “Then, how are we supposed to kill you?” Zachariah was on the verge of losing patience with such a futile conversation on the pretext of setting ground rules.   “If you are so inclined to wipe out my clan and me, I am sure you will find a way like you will find a way to kill the witches because all of us know that they can come back to life umpteen times unless their Staff or Talisman is destroyed. And the witches would weave any kind of magic to protect that”. Heimerich stated as a matter-of-fact, now riling the witches as well and the vampires.   “Enough!” Boomed Istvan. “You find humor in the situation that a while from now will decide the fate of eternity!” Getting no response from either of them, he declared, “fine then. The only rule for this battle is that there is no rule. We fight for survival and dominance. The last surviving clan and its leader will decide the fate of the survivors, if any, from the other clans.   The three looked at each other and simply nodded. Finally, this was a fair fight according to the vampires and the shapeshifters that they weren’t handicapped by constraints. The loud thunder and strike of the lightening blot in the center of the triangle signaled that the battle could ensue. And thus, begin the largest war of power and supremacy began on the planet even before mankind came into existence.   Even the incessant rains took a pause and shuddered at the bloodshed. The vampires grew more powerful with each kill as they replenished the lost strength with an endless supply of fresh shapeshifter blood, while the shapeshifter birds concentrated on stealing or coning the witches out of their Talisman that were fashioned as necklaces, bracelets, or rings. The Staff was the property of only a few powerful witches including the leader. While some vampires focused on these witches to destroy their Staff, using their speed and force, the shapeshifters, silently hovered above, and once the witch was killed, the shapeshifter attacked the vampire by inserting their sharp claws and talons and extracted the heart from the back.   The witches wielded their magic to extract the heart or behead the others but the vampires were faster and the animals were merciless. Finally, the witches resorted to saving themselves by casting a protective bubble around them. Despite opposition, the vampires and shapeshifters pushed the circle of protection unintentionally in the same direction and away from the witches. The combined force was extremely strong to keep them at bay that even the witches had to give up and were defeated.   The night seemed to be never-ending as the battle continued for hours. Each side was rapidly losing their clan members, males females alike. Disregarding the loss, each clan continued to fight for supremacy. Just when the dawn was about to break out painting the sky with hues of midnight blue and ink as the dark clouds were persistent, the leaders made their final kills and paused to look around in an attempt to find the next victim.   They only spotted each other, and charged towards each other, unknowingly stepping in the holy triangle of worship. As soon as they were positioned at the respective apexes, the ray of light broke out from the yet inky sky, trapping them on the spot.   The almighty addressed them furiously, “I made this ground for worship, so each of your clan could channel power and maintain balance in the universe. But you have desecrated this triangle by spilling each other’s blood. It was my fault to give you command of the planet. Your greed for power and hunger for supremacy has destroyed everything. I no longer see you worthy of dominion”.   The three stared at the ray of light and cast a glance around, finally, realizing what their actions had led to. None of their clans were alive to rule.   “You have not only destroyed my land but also colored my water, the very essence of life. Your own greed has destroyed your clans, risking your species to extinction”. That’s when the gravity of the situation sunk into the leaders. It was true, there was only one survivor from each clan, the leaders, themselves. They stared at each other with shock and lost expression. None knew what their fate held or what punishment the Almighty might deem fit.   “I have decided to restart my Universe with a clean slate. The world needs to undergo an apocalypse to rid the planet of this catastrophe. I will also construct a new species, with all the qualities that you have, hunger, greed, violent streak, speed, patience, and intelligence, but most of all, I will cultivate a new virtue called kindness. With kindness will come faith, trust, and above all love and humanity. Yes, I will create a Human.   “And what about us? We can’t just perish away”, Zachariah asked impatiently.   “Yes...immortality, my biggest folly. I will rectify it. No human shall be immortal. But since you are and as much as I wish to, I cannot reverse it. So, I will set your boundaries. During, apocalypse, only one pair of each species will survive, one male one female. But since you are only one of your kind, you will have to find your mate....in a human. In your entire existence, I bless you with only one chance of procreation with a human woman. You may choose to satisfy your needs but if you waste your chance to procreate, sooner or later, your species will perish”.   The three looked on, confused whether they were blessed with the chance to procreate or cursed with only one chance to procreate.   Istvan mustered the guts to question, “where, when, and how shall we find that human woman?”   The dawn light spread its colors giving the impression that the Almighty was being entertained with their foolish questions and further added to their stupefaction. “I cannot tell you where, when, and how. That fate would decide. But the condition is that you cannot force any woman to submit to your power. No force, intimidation, treachery, or magic should be involved. She has to agree because of her Love for you”. The bright ray vanished and the sun started to rise like a diamond halo casting a golden glow on the sky and the earth beneath, leaving the three astounded.   For once in forever, they didn’t feel hostility towards each other as they all were sailing in the same boat of survival.   “What are we supposed to do now?” Heimerich finally, broke the long pregnant pause.   “Wait for the Almighty to create the human woman...” Zachariah stated in a tone as if it was the most obvious thing to do.   “He didn’t tell us how long we’ll have to wait!” Istvan added. “But...” something else started bothering him.   “What is it Istvan?” Zachariah prodded seeing him lost in thought.   “Hmmm....I was wondering....” but his thought was left incomplete as the ground below them rumbled and started to crack open. The water from the nearby banks rose to immeasurable heights and splashed hitting the ground hard with a force that several trees were uprooted in its wake.   “Almighty didn’t waste a single minute! Looks like the apocalypse has already begun”, Heimerich inferred with sarcasm.   “We need to seek shelter to ride it out before we perish with the storm!” Zachariah hollered loudly over the gusty winds blowing over their heads and whipping sandstorms.   “I know where we can be safe till this is over!” Istvan suggested, “but for once you have to trust me and go with me”.   Zachariah and Heimerich looked at each other and then both looked at Istvan. Each had skepticism written in their eyes but there was no other choice in the situation. Both nodded.   Istvan nodded too and extended his palm. Hesitatingly, first Zachariah and then Heimerich, placed their palms over his and he maintained a tight grip and instructed them, “whatever happens, do not let go of this bond!”   He started chanting in an archaic language, which got louder as the winds howled and trees bowed down on them. But after a while, none of the disasters touched them or affected them in any way. Istvan’s eyes were closed concentrating on his spell but the other two were vigilant of their surroundings. A moment later, everything around them disappeared and they were in a spot where the surroundings were identical but without the desecration of the battle or the destruction of apocalypse surrounding them.   Only when he was confident, Istvan opened his eyes and was satisfied with his spell. He had constructed a parallel dimension to ride out the storm. He let go of their hands while nodding. The three looked below, the triangle which had cracked below them was intact here, Istvan had managed to channel the remaining power from the holy ground and ensured their safety and survival. Even before they asked, he opened a loop in which they could envision the event cascade of the Universe they left behind.   “I can’t hold the loop for long as there is not much here from where I can channel magic. We will monitor it regularly but each of us needs to conserve our strength till the doomsday passes”. He supplied the information.   “And what are we supposed to do till then?” Zachariah asked already impatient with the impending wait.   “Anything except suck me dry because if you do so, you are stuck here forever!” Istvan replied nonchalantly.   Zachariah pursed his lips and Heimerich shrugged with raised brows and cocky smile. Thus, began their long wait to find their mate for the continuation of each of their species.