Unshackled

By Revaty V Nair

The sky bled hues of crimson and gold,  

Interspersed with the dark grey of her heart.  

The doors of hell, forced open,  

Lucifer and the fallen set ablaze the rain.  

The burning drops scorched the earth,  

Her blood singing.  

The pain and betrayal roaring in her ears.  

She stepped out of her shade, arms spread wide,  

A smile curving her lips as she faced the sky.  

Her face burned.  

Every drop on her skin, every searing flame,  

She savored.  

Her parents’ wails echoed through the chaos,  

Their cries urging her to seek safety.  

As her brutally charred body hit the earth,  

She thought, “Hell is here… right here.”  

Her vision blurred,  

As the vision of her ethereal, gargantuan wings  

Ripped off her,  

Filled her mind.  

Even her stray feathers were not left untouched.  

Her one last hope of freedom ripped to shreds,  

Smeared in blood.  

Her eyes, a carmine tinge,  

When she opened them again,  

Carnage and death welcomed her view.  

She stood slowly,  

Bloodied tear tracks on her face,  

As her torn wings began to reform behind her.  

The Stygian darkness  

Enveloping her senses again.  

She flew,  

Away towards her calling—  

Where… unknown.  

The wind being her guide,  

The sulphurous air burning through her nostrils,  

Making her smile.  

She flew,  

As everyone watched—  

A dark queen of her own might:  

Aelthera.

By Revaty V Nair