It Comes to an End. A New Age Begins. The Rule of The Fox, Red

"You're a goddamn monster!"

She dares to call me a monster? I have been through hell to get to this point. "I am not a monster." I furrow my brow as I step closer to her grinning, "I am a God!" She had her chance to change this. She could have ended it a year ago. We all make decisions and we all have to live with the consequences that come with them. She could have stopped me but something stopped her instead.

"Red, how could you do this? How could you kill so many people?"

"How could I do this?! Do you know what they did to me!?"

All that anger has boiled up again. My mind races to where it all began, "My own family threatened to kill me. Twice! My country used me as a tool but when I wasn't worth it to them anymore they abandoned me. To try and get back home, I trusted a total stranger who wished for me to destroy the world. Before that, I was sold to be hunted like a common animal! I was burnt alive! I was betrayed again!" The deeper I go into this, the more I can feel the heat of my body.

The look on her face shows that she had no idea. "I was abducted by my own country. They weren't going to give me a trial. They were going to take me away and kill me to silence me because I let their abusive secret out into the world! To top it all off, they sent you to try and kill me. We were destined to meet like this but they wanted to play dirty and have you do it because they know that they can't. They! Used! You! And you know it!"

She didn't choose to come here. She was coerced. I know it. I could see it. I got my ninth tail and everything started to change. I know they sent someone to talk to her. I know that they manipulated the facts to get her to come here and attempt to take my life. But here we are.

I threw everything at her as quickly as I could. These experiences are what shaped me into the "monster" that she thinks I am. Maybe I am a monster. Not by my own choice.

She looks broken. There were things she didn't know about me that were just dumped on her. She came here under some incorrect assumptions. Maybe she'll work to understand where I'm coming from. Or maybe that's a vain hope. I know how this ends. I've seen it. It won't be pretty.

She does her best to recollect herself. Her voice is still shaking from her experience. The jump back is a lot. It's not like when I read the journals. It wasn't the world around her shifting to show a story. She relived it. She saw it happen once before and did it all again. "Red, please. Can we just go home?"

That's an odd request. After everything that's happened, she thinks that we can just go back as if nothing happened. I've already set events in motion. There are too many who now rely on me. I've been absent from the outside world for too long as it is. But this even needs to happen before I can return. I need to tie up one more loose end. "I'm sorry, but it's not that simple."

She nods her head as she holds her paws up. "I am too." She takes a deep inhale but nothing happens. She tries again but the desired result doesn't happen. I can feel what she's trying to do but she doesn't know what I've learned while she's been absent from my life. I can feel the grin come across my face, "It's called Dealthy Quiet. A previous life discovered how to hold the elements around the area in a state that makes them unusable. For an alchemic user like you, that puts you out of commission. You chose to fight me and I'm sorry to say this but that was a mistake."

I step forward towards her. I get within her personal space as she tries to step backward. She knocks into a shelf as she tries to put some distance between us. I look down as she tries to move away. The tears in her eyes begin to run down her face as he mouth tries to plead with me, "You aren't the Red I know. This isn't the Red I found myself falling in love with. What happened?"

"Destiny."

I place my paw on her face as she corners herself. "Don't worry Madam Odette, we will meet again." I watch the fear in her eyes as the ice crawls across her face. She closes her eyes tightly as it continues to spread. It quickly spreads to her shoulders, down her body, and to her legs, until she's completely encased. I pull my paw back to look. She's a treasure frozen in time.

The ice is nearly clear allowing her form to be seen by anyone. If anyone ever finds her. I've spent too much time here. It's time for me to return and continue what I sent out to do. One last look at her before I go. Something tugs at me but there's nothing that I can do now. The decision has been made and time must move forward.

I step out of the castle for the first time in weeks. I take my time to walk the trail we took to get to the castle. I find the road we took to get here. I use that to lead me to the forest. The trip out seems to be a lot shorter than it was to get in.

Stepping out into the real world feels different. Things have shifted in the week I've been gone. I can feel the cries of those in need. I can feel the anger of those who are being stomped down by the system I aim to destroy.

The world will soon be in my palms. I tried to do this diplomatically. I let everyone know my intentions from the beginning. It's clear that on the surface, the governments of the world tried to lure me into a false sense of security. That they would show that they were willing to work with me. This pathetic attempt on my life showed that they don't want to. They will only act as though they want to work with me. Meaning that I will have to force them to work with me.

They were worried that I would be a tyrant. They were worried that I would use my powers to subjugate the world to what I wanted. I didn't plan on it. I honestly hoped that mages would be able to live their lives freely in the open. There are still those who do not want to cooperate. They were afraid of a tyrant. Well, now they will get to deal with one.

Today beings the rule of The Fox, Red.