Cost of Peace

MELISSA

I was an outcast or at least that was the way I was treated. Briana Sylvia Evans by birth, I became the second daughter of Mikel and Sylvia Evans. Five years after my birth, my mother died from a strange disease that denied her a peaceful death. It was quite a painful experience watching the person who birthed you writhing in pain months before her demise. Her death had different effects on those she left behind. Father became more consumed by hatred, became more ruthless. He was a body without a soul, he became cold.

Ariana; my eight year old sister was arguably the one who took it best. She just moved on with her life, never shed a tear drop or so I thought while the five year old me was still naive enough to believe mom went on a business trip. Things were never the same since then. Ariana became a pacifist and cared for everyone, cherished every form of life and everyone in the alliance loved her while I grew to become much more like father. I was a hooligan, a bully and loved to pick fights. My sister was cool-headed and I was the opposite.

Seven years after mom's death, Ariana came down with the same disease that killed mom. It was then I realized the world was full of plastic people, the beginning of my hatred towards people.

Ariana and Briana suddenly became a plague everyone avoided. Some people even petitioned for Ariana to be killed to avoid a re-occurence of seven years ago. Many other supernaturals also died of the same causes as mom. Everyone deserted us. Father became more heartbroken, no cure had been found. He wasn't ready to lose another member of his family.

Initially, she was supposed to have six more months to live in pain like mom did but her's was more aggressive. Everyday, she cried, she couldn't move anymore. Her disease had paralyzed her from waist down and it was advancing fast.

When the day she would die came, she asked me to take her to the beach at night when the moon was up. We used to sneak out of the house to see the waters sparkle under the moon. It was her favourite sight.

‘Briana', the last time my sister would call my name. Her eyes were teary, her look was melancholic. She had made up her mind. ‘Would you help me?'

Tears streamed down my cheeks. I had never cried so hard. Why would Ariana want that? ‘Father will soon be back with cure' I said through my tears. I knew there was no cure but I didn't want to let her go just yet. Perhaps I was being selfish.

‘We don't choose the day we die but I am happy I have the chance to choose mine' Ariana said with a genuine smile. I cried further but I understood her. She had never been that peaceful since she got sick and she wasn't wavering. We both said our goodbyes through our tears and I put my sister to eternal sleep. I threw her body into the sea as instructed. She had always wanted to swim with the fishes in death. With tears filling up my eyes again, I said my final goodbye to Ariana Melissa Evans.