[short story] The Transition
Twenty-two hours of labour and the baby still hadn't come. Danny was anxiously pacing around, considering his options. He and Raila had not been able to agree on a name for their child. He repeatedly mulled over the options in his head.
And that's when he heard Raila scream. The baby was out, he could hear the cries. Danny rushed into the delivery room and felt himself jump back in horror when he saw his offspring. Its eyes were red, as red as the blood in between his unconscious wife's legs. It was a girl, just as he had hoped. But it was one of them. Danny had not anticipated this. For a moment, he considered killing off the baby at the first chance he could get. But what would he tell Raila? That he had murdered her long-awaited baby? His baby? No, he could not do that. He decided that he would have to wait for Raila to regain consciousness.
The world was populated with the Virtuites and the Malefites. The Virtuites were the ones with blue eyes. The good ones. The ones who governed the cities and ones who constituted the common population. The Malefites were the ones with the red eyes. The smaller set of corrupted wizards that caused chaos and destruction through their enhanced sensory, physical and clairvoyant powers. They randomly erupted from the general population. One was always born a Virtuite, but every now and then, a Virtuite turned into a Malefite. The eyes turned red, sometimes when a child turned ten, or when it came of age, or sometimes even when a person reached middle age, and sometimes even later. But never this early. Nobody had ever been born with red eyes, Malefites were always created through transitioning. This was unheard of.
The Malefites caused indiscriminate destruction. According to law, Malefites were to be reported to the policing force who ensured that they were burned alive. That was the only way to kill Malefites, normal methods did not work on them. Family members of a person who has transitioned into a Malefite were required to report the person to the government at the earliest.
Danny stared at his baby. He felt nothing. He felt no fatherly affection, neither did he feel the overwhelming hatred that he normally felt at the sight of a pair of red eyes. Danny worked in the law enforcement sector of the government which meant executing Malefites was part of his primary job description. Like every other Malefite, this kid would grow up to murder her own family and many others'. She would never learn to love or feel. She would survive on destruction alone.
Danny did what he thought was the right thing to do. He called up the head of law enforcement. He divulged complete information about his red-eyed baby. The head, an old friend of Danny's, was sympathetic but was also stern in declaring his order to surrender the baby to the government. What had Danny expected? That they would let him keep the baby? No, they would not allow such a risk. But it was just a baby, wasn't it? How could they kill it? All Danny could think about was the years that he and Raila had spent praying for a child. And they had finally gotten one. A Malefite. The very existence of whose race that Danny had legally sworn to destroy.
Raila woke up and went in search of her husband. She found him staring out of the window in the foyer. Before Danny could register the details of the moment, there was a sharp pang of unbearable pain on his side. He turned around and saw her eyes before he saw the knife in her hands. Blue eye to red eye. She had transitioned.
And that's when he heard Raila scream. The baby was out, he could hear the cries. Danny rushed into the delivery room and felt himself jump back in horror when he saw his offspring. Its eyes were red, as red as the blood in between his unconscious wife's legs. It was a girl, just as he had hoped. But it was one of them. Danny had not anticipated this. For a moment, he considered killing off the baby at the first chance he could get. But what would he tell Raila? That he had murdered her long-awaited baby? His baby? No, he could not do that. He decided that he would have to wait for Raila to regain consciousness.
The world was populated with the Virtuites and the Malefites. The Virtuites were the ones with blue eyes. The good ones. The ones who governed the cities and ones who constituted the common population. The Malefites were the ones with the red eyes. The smaller set of corrupted wizards that caused chaos and destruction through their enhanced sensory, physical and clairvoyant powers. They randomly erupted from the general population. One was always born a Virtuite, but every now and then, a Virtuite turned into a Malefite. The eyes turned red, sometimes when a child turned ten, or when it came of age, or sometimes even when a person reached middle age, and sometimes even later. But never this early. Nobody had ever been born with red eyes, Malefites were always created through transitioning. This was unheard of.
The Malefites caused indiscriminate destruction. According to law, Malefites were to be reported to the policing force who ensured that they were burned alive. That was the only way to kill Malefites, normal methods did not work on them. Family members of a person who has transitioned into a Malefite were required to report the person to the government at the earliest.
Danny stared at his baby. He felt nothing. He felt no fatherly affection, neither did he feel the overwhelming hatred that he normally felt at the sight of a pair of red eyes. Danny worked in the law enforcement sector of the government which meant executing Malefites was part of his primary job description. Like every other Malefite, this kid would grow up to murder her own family and many others'. She would never learn to love or feel. She would survive on destruction alone.
Danny did what he thought was the right thing to do. He called up the head of law enforcement. He divulged complete information about his red-eyed baby. The head, an old friend of Danny's, was sympathetic but was also stern in declaring his order to surrender the baby to the government. What had Danny expected? That they would let him keep the baby? No, they would not allow such a risk. But it was just a baby, wasn't it? How could they kill it? All Danny could think about was the years that he and Raila had spent praying for a child. And they had finally gotten one. A Malefite. The very existence of whose race that Danny had legally sworn to destroy.
Raila woke up and went in search of her husband. She found him staring out of the window in the foyer. Before Danny could register the details of the moment, there was a sharp pang of unbearable pain on his side. He turned around and saw her eyes before he saw the knife in her hands. Blue eye to red eye. She had transitioned.
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