The Moon Goddess

The night air was starting to get the brisk chill of the season changing into autumn, the wind whistling a tune to welcome the recent changes like a lost friend returning once again and in the far distance, a wolf howling to the moon as if singing. The streetlight flickered on and off like a warning in the dead silence. The woman looked behind her as the leaves skittered across the stone pathway. Fear shone in her eyes as she clung to the blanket she carried. Closer and closer it seemed he got. She had to run; she had to hide but where? He was too close now. Her breathing picked up as she stopped at the top of the bridge. She looked over the curve of the stone bridge at the vast ocean that lay beneath her. Shimmering on top of the calm water, shone the moon. The woman tilted her head back and let her long honey brown hair tumble behind her. “Moon Goddess, what do I do? How can I protect her?” The woman looked in her arms at the brilliant violet eyes that stared back at her, her voice quivering just a little as she whispered like a prayer. The woman ran her finger down the baby’s cheek and the baby smiled up at her. The woman sighed and looked back out to the water. The image of the moon that was once shimmering across the water was now rippled as if someone or something disturbed it. The woman frantically looked around, her hair whipping back and forth. She did not see anyone or anything but that did not mean that he was not there. She looked at the water once more as the beam of light from the moon began to glow brighter, catching her eyes. It was almost too bright to look at. The woman stepped back from the edge as the light began to fade to a soft glisten. There in the middle of the vast ocean view, floated a woman bathed in the most luminescent light. The woman was not afraid of her. She took a step forward and felt the love pour from the lady on the water. The lady on the water was dressed in white, she floated towards the woman, her hair flapping in the wind behind her as she got closer. “There isn’t much time. Give her to me and take my solemn vow, you will see her again. She is needed for something much greater.” The lady stretched out her arms to take the babe. The woman felt a tear slide down her cheek as she looked at the lady’s outstretched arms. She looked back down at the baby now sleeping in her arms. “How will I know she will be safe? How will I know that he won’t….” A rush of wind blew the woman to silence. “There is not much time. If you want her to be safe, she needs to come with me. He is almost here. I cannot be here when he does, I am giving you, my word. She will be safe.” The lady in white spoke in a rushed tone. Her voice was smooth as velvet. A branch broke in the background. The woman whipped her head towards the sound, then looked at the lady. “Please. Please make sure she is safe and protected. She is…. Everything.” The woman pleaded with tears streaming down her face. The lady in white smiled sadly then reached her out her arms again and the glow of white enveloped the baby. More branches broke in the woods behind them. The sound was getting closer. The woman closed her eyes as the weight in her arms disappeared. When she opened them again, she was alone. “Not where I thought I would find you, my love.” a voice behind the woman said startling the woman out of her daze. The woman turned around and faced the man she dreaded more than Death himself. “Bane.” The name tasted like dust on her tongue as she spoke it. She could feel the charge in the air around him. His energy always gave her chills down her back. “Ros.” The nickname threw her for a minute. She shook it off. “What do you want?” Rosalind crossed her arms as she asked defiantly. Bane chuckled as he took a couple steps toward her. “You have something of mine, Ros. I want it back.” Ros kept her face as neutral as possible. “I have no idea what you mean.” Bane stopped when she said that. He tilted his head and stared at her for a moment. His eyes sharpened and the gold began to give off an eerie light. “Don’t you dare lie to me! I know you have it! I know you hid her from me. I am coming to you and asking for her back before I take her from you. You cannot begin to possibly imagine the power and strength she will have.” Bane exclaimed excitedly as he walked in a circle around Ros. He rubbed his hands together as if he could get the warmth back in them. “I still don’t know what you are talking about Bane. Who is this she that you are looking for? What power and strength? If you ask me, you don’t know what you are talking about.” Ros threw back at him. Bane stopped and looked at her so coldly, she felt goosebumps running down her arms. Ros rubbed her arms to get the cold out of her system. Ros looked back at Bane and felt his anger. “You dare say I am a liar? You dare to go against me?” Bane asked, his voice running over her like ice. “I know she is here! I know you have given birth. This babe will be the most powerful our world has ever seen. I have waited, bid my time until you would conceive, until you gave birth. At one point I thought I would have to take matters into my hands, but the Seer told me to be patient and I was. Now I want her! Give her to me!! NOW!” The fierceness of his voice and power sent a whirlwind straight towards Ros. Before she could think of defending herself, Ros felt a gust pick her up and over the bridge. Ros closed her eyes and waited for the impact as she fell faster towards the top of the ocean’s surface. Water splashed with such force when she hit the first layer of the dark sea. Bane saw the water splash and looked over the edge. “Damnit.” He muttered to himself. He waited for a moment longer. Nothing disturbed the water. “Damnit!” He shouted. His temper always got the best of him. “That was quite the performance.” came a soft voice from behind him. Bane turned and smiled. “Seer.” He bowed his head graciously at the stout woman before him. “Bane.” She nodded back. “I see your plan to take the child has failed. She did not have it with her tonight and you sent her overboard without so much as a thought.” She tsked. Bane could feel the tension in his shoulders. The disappointment from the Seer was causing him to be uncomfortable. He was never uncomfortable. There was something about this Seer that just rubbed him the wrong way. What did she want with the child? The Seer had told him of the prophecy regarding her but never what she wanted with the baby. “Yes, well we all know how my temper can get. She called me a liar and said I knew nothing! She challenged your words!” Bane expressed. Lightning struck behind them. A loud clash in the sky followed it. “You fool! Of course, she lied and called you a liar. The child is worth more than you could ever imagine and will become the most powerful being there is in this world and others. She will not willingly give up that child. Now you must go look for the child. We cannot fail. Before the bell chimes on her 17th birthday, we must have her in our possession. So, you have some time.” With that a cloud of grey smoke came from underneath the Seer and she vanished. Bane looked on in amazement. He had never seen the Seer materialize or disappear before. She was one of the most powerful Seers he had ever come across in his many years. Bane stood there in the flickering light from the post in the eerie silence. A wolf hollowed in the distance. A chorus of howling followed. Bane snickered. “Filthy mongrels” he said disgustedly. With a snap of his fingers, Bane lifted his arms and head towards the sky. A black smoke came rising up from his feet, Bane could feel the transformation, he became lighter and then he was no more. Bane could see with more clarity in the night, his eyes became sharpened, his hearing impeccable as his wings carried him through the night sky back to his castle. Turning into a bat has its advantages as Bane made it to his window in minutes. Once Bane landed in his room, the smoke began again, and Bane stood once more. He had work to do.