Chapter 50: A Life for a Life
The morning started as they all did-the soft murmur of servants hurrying through the mansion, it was all a gentle hum that was comforting to hear as Reika prepared for the day. She stood by the window of her chamber and watched the sun rise over the gardens, dew sparkling on leaves like diamonds. It was a calm, peaceful moment.
That peace was short-lived as Daisy, her handmaid, appeared pale and unsteady at the door.
"My Queen," Daisy began, trembling, her hands clutched together in front of her. "I. I don't feel well."
Reika turned at once, concerned. "Daisy, what's wrong? You look like you're about to collapse."
Daisy weakly shook her head. "I think it's just exhaustion. I'll be fine with some rest."
Reika's face frowned, her sharp eyes looking at the girl's face. Daisy's usually glowing skin was ghostly, lips tinged blue. "Take the day off," Reika said, firm. "I'll have someone bring you some herbal tea and food. Go lie down and rest."
Daisy nodded and began to turn and leave. But before she could take more than a few steps, her knees buckled. She crumpled to the floor in a heap, her body became lifeless.
"Daisy!" Reika screamed, dashing to her side. Her heart pounding, she knelt beside the girl, shaking her gently. "Wake up! Please, wake up!"
But Daisy hadn't moved. Reika's heart was racing, her shaking hands calling for help.
"Someone! Get a medic!" she shouted, her voice breaking.
In moments, there appeared a team of retainers who bore Daisy away in a carriage, with Reika refusing to stay behind, climbing in beside the unconscious handmaid as it careened toward the hospital.
Sterile in every way, the wall of the hospital did not comfort Reika as she marched up and down the hall outside the examination room. Besides one million fears, her mind betrayed her with memories of her old life. She had already failed Daisy once, unable to protect her from cruelty that was too much to fit upon a young, innocent mind. She could not face up to history repeating itself in this case.
A doctor emerged from the room, his face a mask of confusion. "Your Majesty," he said, bowing low. "We've run every test we can. Physically, Daisy is fine. Her organs are functioning normally, and there are no signs of poisoning or trauma. But.she's in a coma, and we don't know why."
Reika's knees almost buckled. "A coma?" she whispered, her eyes welling up with tears. "How can that be if she's healthy?"
The doctor shook his head. "It's as if her mind has simply. shut down. We'll continue to monitor her, but I must be honest-there's little we can do until she wakes on her own."
Reika clutched the back of a chair, her nails digging into the wood. The weight of it all crushed her, and the dam of her emotions broke. She stumbled out of the hospital into cold air, her vision blurred by tears.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
The river was still when Reika finally reached it, its soft flow jarringly in contrast to the storm that had raged within her. She threw herself onto the bank, great sobs racking her body as memories of her old life played like some cruel movie in her brain. She saw Daisy's smiling face, heard her laughter, felt her warmth-and then she saw her lying lifeless, the poison draining her vitality as Reika held her in her arms.
"I don't want to do this again," Reika whispered, her voice cracking. "Please, not again."
Soft footsteps across the water's surface pulled her from her despair. She looked up, startled, as a radiant figure appeared before her. The Moon Goddess stood with an air of both comfort and foreboding, her ethereal beauty glowing under the night sky.
"Why do you weep, child?" the Moon Goddess asked, her voice a soothing melody weighted with wisdom.
Reika fell to her knees, her tears streaming anew. "It's Daisy," she cried. "She's dying, and I don't know how to save her. Please, tell me what to do!"
And in such sad eyes, the Moon Goddess regarded her. "Reika, you must realize-some fates can not be changed. Daisy's soul is bound to a treading that must end here."
"No!" Reika burst forth in a desperate voice. "She's innocent! She doesn't deserve it! Can't anything be done for her?"
The Moon Goddess sighed, her face distended in pain. "One thing," she said after a while. "Yet, it comes at the cost of much."
Reika's heart leaped with hope, though fear followed quickly. "What cost?" she asked.
"A life for a life," the Moon Goddess replied. "Daisy's life may be restored, but only if another life is taken in her place. It must be a life that was spared in your past life, a life that should not have lived."
Reika was tense, her mind reeling. The idea of sacrificing someone, of playing god with life and death, made her stomach ache "I. I can't," she whispered. "How could I possibly choose who deserves to die?"
The Moon Goddess stepped closer, looking into her eyes, 'The choice is yours, Reika. However, let me bring to your attention that a balance in fate will be moved should you choose to save Daisy. There will be consequences, and not maybe as you will have them. A Life for a life is the balance of that universe."
Reika's mind reeled as the faces of those who had wronged her in her past life flashed before her: those who had caused her suffering, who had betrayed her trust. She thought of the Dawn family, of the scheming nobles, of those who had escaped justice. Was she justified in taking one of their lives to save Daisy?
"I need time," she said finally, her voice small.
The Moon Goddess nodded. "Time flees, child. Decide wisely, for once done, it cannot be returned to."
With that, the goddess dissolved into the night, leaving Reika to her impossible decision in lonely silence. She stared at the river, its dark waters reflecting the moonlight, and felt the weight of her predicament crush her.
The mind turned to Daisy-loyal, bright, innocent Daisy. She could not stand the thought of losing her again; neither was the price worth paying to save her.
Reika clenched her fists as tears fell freely. "What do I do?" she whispered to the night. "Who am I to decide who lives and who dies?"
The river held its silence, save the soft lapping of water against its shores. Reika knew a decision had to be made, yet as night wore on, she felt lost, with no end in sight.