SHUTDOWN MATE

“A long time ago, all was right with the world. Prosperity and peace filled the days. The four strongest immortal species.

“Werewolves, weredragons, witches, and vampires lived amongst each other in peace and harmony.

“Great respect was offered to the weredragons and werewolves. Because apart from being able to walk in their human form during the day and night.

“They had the power to shapeshift into their counterparts’ wolves and dragons. The weredragons got their power from the sun.

“And the werewolves got their power from the moon. The dragons were strongest in daylight. And the wolves got stronger too as the day ended.

“Among the four races with predominate power, the witches held a special place. For centuries, the witches were the defenders of humanity.

“They kept everyone, including humans, with no superpowers, in check. They uphold ancient vows of non-interference between the two sworn enemies.

“The sworn enemies before the beginning of time were and still are werewolves and weredragon. The two most powerful supernatural beings that will always threaten the balance.

“A war between the two meant and will always mean the beginning of the winner as the most powerful supernatural being and the end to the losing species being completely eliminated on the surface of the earth.”

That was Iyya’s childhood favorite story. 'The Legend of werewolves and weredragons.' narrated by her late mother, 'Anna' to her. It was like a lullaby to her, and she wanted to hear it every night before she went to sleep.

In her childish mind, she always imagined her mother to be the last long-lost weredragon that survived until the end of that tale and has never been found.

At the end of the tale, one wedragon survives. And it was fortunate for her that the weredragon that survived had no legs or hands in her body, just like her mother.

She had always dreamt of a day that she would see her mother moving on her own without a wheelchair.

So Iyya had imagined her mother turning into a dragon one day and flying around the Zanzibar skies. Spitting fire out of her mouth into the Indian Ocean while Iyya stood at the beach.

The wish turning into a reality was so vivid in her mind and she always saw herself watching her mother with fascination in her eyes. While she jumped happily.

That tale, as of right now, at this moment, keeps knocking on her head. Not only that. But it is also accompanied by a reminder of the last conversation she had with her late mother on her deathbed.

In her current state, the tale brings her to tears because it reminds her so much of her late mother. The person she ended up growing to pity.

But she would rather occupy her mind with that tale and the painful memories that come with remembering her mother, however painful it is, more than what is happening now.

Right now she is in the middle of the forest and the thick forest waste and entangled grasses hold her back from running and putting up her feathered wings to fly.

FLY? Yes, fly. She laughs sadly at the thought. She is no longer in her human form but a colorful bird. ‘A useless one,’ if you asked her about her opinion on it.

It can’t speak and it has done nothing to help her turn back to her human form.

How she wishes she could get back into her human body in this moment and be able to shout for help or run with her own two legs.

But no. The violence and fear of the world have followed her around all her life. She is a second example after her mother of someone she would pity.

She is scared. Terrified at the moment. But nothing can beat her biggest fear. Her biggest fear is never meeting her stepmother ‘Heina’ again.

To Iyya defense. She doesn’t know what she did so wrong to Heina. But she thinks it has been enough punishment given to her living in a peacock body for this long. She doesn’t know anyone who would help get her human body back other than Heina.

After all, it was all Heina’s doing.

Five years now. Five years leaving the life of a bird. She still sometimes does not believe this is real. That this is her life. She thinks it is a dream. She will wake up soon.

Heina had been her mother since her dad 'Khamsini' died and was her only close friend and relative. She was so supportive and loving, the only person who made her dad truly happy after her late mother.

‘What happened?’ is a golden question Iyya would love to know the answer to. Such a drastic change. That made Heina hurt her this much.

Iyya wants to plead with Heina to forgive her and let her have a bit of normalcy in her life.