ALTGS 29

“So then do you understand why you need to be nice to humans?”

Lord and Metaghrindar sat on the wide balcony outside the main office. Sloping over the railing and sighing repeatedly, staring at nothing in the distance, Metaghrindar’s hair served as a perfect curtain to hide most of the tired yet confused emotion on his face. He didn’t want Lord to see him like this, but his was the only opinion he knew would be important to him. What was the purpose of treating humans well? Why were they so complicated? Celestria had started answering and helping him work though the muddled thoughts on people.

Lord himself sat on the thin railing, legs hanging over the ledge as a small but biting breeze fluttered his hair behind him. He had on his usual empty smile, but he was entertained by whatever it was his aide was telling him right now. Why was he bothering with whatever Meta was doing? Why was he listening to Meta mutter to himself as he tried to understand the importance of human culture and etiquette. Hm.

Celestria had been as accommodating as she possibly could, but it was immensely difficult to explain why it was important to treat all beings with respect even if they were weaker or different from oneself to a demon. It was too foreign a concept. She had tried her very best a day ago, but she had had to stop when Meta’s questions had began to overwhelm both of them. Yesterday, she had not come to the Palace because of meeting she had to conduct so Meta had to wrestle with his philosophies all alone yesterday as well as today. All the conversation could be summarized easily.

Care for people as you would someone you love, or the way you want to be loved.

It was simple to understand to human beings, but difficult for the prideful, stubborn Metaghrindar to even fathom. But he admirably struggled on. Lord was amused by the moral dilemma he was witnessing his long-time aide encounter.

“To care for those weak, flimsy pieces of meat like I care for those close to me... how can I do this? They have not earned my respect. They are not strong. They have nothing individually to show for themselves! They cannot survive in the cold, nor in the heat. They get hurt easily, and they even have something called “illness”! Anything and everything can kill them! Something so weak... how can I find love for it?” The large demon lamented, his voice genuinely burdened with confusion.

Lord hummed as he thought about this. Something weak and small, unremarkable and fragile. Indeed, he could not understand why anyone would care for such a being. In all the years he had lived, Lord had never found a reason to pay any mind to creatures weaker than he was. Why should he? And seeing as he had never met someone stronger than himself, he did not even have the experience of admiring someone else. Wanting that person to succeed, and wanting to help them in any way he could.

That was how many demons had described their feelings for him. And eventually, they had began to call him their god.

They had such a strong love for him. Enough for prideful and individualistic demons to come together in their boundless adoration. Funny. He didn’t really feel the same way for—

Ah.

That smile that he had on his lips grew faint, nearly disappearing altogether from his face.

If he did not feel any love for those that loved him, then did he really have anything one could call a “relationship” with anyone?

There grew a peculiar feeling in his chest. It was disconcerting. Uncomfortable. Oh my. It was beyond disgusting.

He knew what a relationship was. It was a connection to someone. Did he feel connected to anything?

Lord turned to look at the morose Meta beside him. Surely he was connected to his aide. He must have a connection with him.

And yet, Lord knew that there would be no impact to his existence if Meta’s was to vanish before his eyes.

His brow, which was normally straight and calm, furrowed. That feeling was getting stronger. Like a swirling emptiness.

If the demons that loved and worshiped him were to one day disappear, or turn against him. Would he feel sad? Disappointed? Lonely?

He would not.

He would easily murder them all if they rose against him without hesitation or guilt.

The realization was like a shock of lightning. Eyes wide and pupils constricting into thin slits, Lord suddenly stood up off the railing. Except there was no ground in front of him. Nothing but a three-story drop.

However, he did not plummet down to the ground. No. He stood in the air, like as if he had his feet on an invisible platform.

The wind grew stronger, whipping his iridescent hair all about him.

If everything and everyone he knew were to disappear right then and there... he would not feel the slightest bit of loss.

That in and of itself was devastating.

Celestria had just taken a much-needed evening bath. Giving a satisfied sigh, she collapsed into a comfortable chair, crossing her ankles and allowing herself to have no restrictions. As a lady, there were so many things you had to do. Sit straight, cross your legs, fold your hands right hand upon left. Spine straighter than a taut string, shoulders elegantly relaxed, neck beautifully lengthened. It was a lot. And it was annoying. However, in the privacy of her room, she could sit back and slouch a little. She could tilt her head all the way back and slump into the chair.

Ever since then... a day ago in a cold hallway. Ever since she had gained an ally, and cried for the first time since she was six, she felt like a weight had been lifted just a little. She had always felt alone. Even though she had a mother and father and an adorable little brother, Celestria never felt like any of it was hers. All of that belonged to the Celestria that existed before six. It always felt like her mother and father weren’t hers. And somewhere in her heart, she accepted that they were not.

But her father’s arms were very warm and safe on that cold day in that cold hallway.

She had thought that she would only shed a tear or two, but she had found herself to be such a mess. Tears everywhere, unable to even cry elegantly. Wailing and wailing as her father had patted her head and hugged her very tightly.

When was the last time she had been able to let go like that?

No. Had she ever let go like that before?

She had allowed her father to carry her to the carriage, and sit with her as he comforted her. She knew that wasn’t what he was at all used to. Rashidi Voltaine was, more often than not, about as emotionally expressive as a stone. So his comforts had been a bit clumsy in their delivery.

But he would never understand how perfect they had been to Celestria.

When she had finally gotten her senses about her and sat there with tear-stained cheeks and a hiccup, he had looked so worried. He kept scratching his head, or nervously thumbing his cuffs. That habit he had of always fiddling with his cuffs had been the most human thing Celestria had seen of him, really. He hadn’t spoke then, but Celestria had been content with that too.

On the tiny table before her sat a mug of steaming hot milk and a small cup with cocoa powder. Humming a lighthearted song from her previous life, she mixed these two items, then smelled the sweet, comfortable aroma before taking a tiny sip.

Ah! How foolish of her.

Even after all this time, she still tried to drink very hot things.

For some reason, she was incapable of drinking or eating hot things. She always had to let them cool, embarrassingly enough. Because of this, she always stuck to cold food and drink in public, unless she knew it was a situation where everyone would neglect their food for a while in favor of enjoyable conversation.

Letting out a pitiful sigh, Celestria set the mug aside and peered out her window.

The weather looked terrible.

Had it not been only sparsely cloudy just a moment ago? Now, the entire sky was covered in dark, thundering clouds that seemed to have sucked away whatever little light from the world there had been. She could hear the rumbling thunder in the distance, like muffled warnings.

It was perfect weather for her cocoa though, so she would not complain.

While still humming, she absently played with her feet. Waving her toes back and forth, then poking at her left foot with her right.

Oh that was right! Her hair was wet!

“Ah, damnit. Forgot about my hair!” Celestria shot up, patting the long wine-colored braids she had on. This was her favorite way of wearing her hair. It kept her from poking at her strands and she could easily forget about it for a long time. She’d have to take them down soon, however. They were starting to fray.

Eh, maybe not. She’d leave them in for longer. After all, she always wore her hair covered in public. Nobody would know.

Retrieving a towel from the table on the other side of her room, Celestria carefully patted her hair dry. It was not dripping wet, but she had to be careful because of how cold the weather was. “You’ll get pneumonia if you let your hair stay wet!” Her mother always said that when she was young. Or was it when she was young. Perhaps that was her other mother.

The mother one lifetime ago.

Celestria had gotten used to not feeling too bad about it. About the people that she loved a very long time ago, in a completely different universe.

Join your mother in Hell.

But she had never been able to forget about the people that had taken so much from her. They were not here, in Fortane or in this strange world she lived in now. But she saw slivers of them in the nobles that she would meet. A piece here, another there. Selfish. Entitled. Vicious. It was easy to forget the warmth of a caring and loving mother from years go because selfless kindness was virtually nonexistent in this cold world. But raw, unfiltered hatred? A dime a dozen.

Some things, you simply couldn’t ever forget. They were too synonymous with human nature.

“Whatever. It’s over, and I’ll deal with anyone who acts like that properly, like I should’ve done then.” She mumbled to herself, still patting her hair dry.

With a sigh, she tossed the towel to the chair beside the table, then turned around to her cup of cocoa. Oh gosh, this cuppa would taste phenomenal! With a bit of a childish grin, she began to walk back to her chair with a jolly spring in her step.

But before she could reach her now-cooled beverage, the window between her and the chair burst open, letting in a cold howling wind and sheets of icy rain. Celestria screamed, throwing her arms up to cover her face in a moment of panic. The violent wind was whipping her thin nightgown all about her, cutting into her legs and slapping her body with its breathtaking chill.

What was happening!

Her heart was thundering in her chest, almost as loud as the rumbling in the sky. Slowly, she looked up from her arms. It was dark, and the wind sounded inhuman. Like several beasts howling, lamenting.

Crying.

A bolt of lighting flashed, illuminating everything for an instant, and what Celestria saw in that darkness was enough to make her feel like her blood had drained out into a pool under her. Enough to make her fingers and toes feel numb, and her jaw drop.

There was a man with glowing eyes floating outside her window.