Beneath The Surface

Inciting Incident 5 - The traitor!

Normal text
Thinking
Onomatopoeia

Astaroth's POV
Astaroth opened her eyes to find herself standing in the middle of a very familiar lawn. Green grass carpeted the ground beneath her feet, the blazing sun bathing everything in its supposedly warm rays. But Astaroth had long lost the ability to feel warmth in these kinds of mundane things. Instead, she was more excited to see someone here. Someone she had been dying to see every single day. Gales of cooling breeze blew past, messing up her black hair, and bringing along a melodious voice with it.

"Asta."

Astaroth whipped her head around almost immediately, a reflexive response she had picked up since long ago. There she was. The person whose name she had grown accustomed to answering to. Her sister was standing there in all her glory, her white hair ruffling in the wind, but it didn't mar her serene beauty whatsoever. Sister Luna's blood-red eyes shone beautifully in the bright light, her pretty smile emitting a warmth that could rival-no, obliterate the blazing heat of the sun. The hem of her white dress flew up a little from the breeze, making her look like a graceful lily. Her milky-white complexion was a stark contrast to the paleness of her face on that night.

Astaroth's heart couldn't help but skip a beat, her breath completely stolen away. Seeing a healthy Sister Luna standing in front of her. Not lying feebly in her arms with a giant bloody hole in her gut. She knew all this was probably just a dream, but Astaroth couldn't help falling for it like a fool. Maybe this was what she had always wanted to believe in. A separate reality where her sister was still alive, gracing her with the warmth of her radiant smile and the kind touch of her hands.

*How delusional you humans are.*

Astaroth ignored the musings of her dumb grandfather and focused all her attention on her sister instead.

"Sister..." she managed to mutter amidst her breathlessness.

The regal goddess walked towards Astaroth with graceful steps, "Do you know where Akali is?"

She could feel her excited mood souring at the mention of that traitor's name. Even in a dream, her sister's attention would never be solely on her. It would always be on that girl! That backstabbing girl!

Why... Why must you always favour her over me... If it's because I have imperfections, tell me! I will change immediately! Just... Only look at me...

Despite her mind screaming at her to not desecrate the living goddess in front of her, Astaroth still reached out and squeezed her soft and supple hand, "Akali's off for her morning run."

That was a lie. That traitor wasn't doing her monotonous exercise routine. Around this time, she should be busy getting beaten up by those ugly rats. She always loved diving head-first into scuffles she couldn't win. Only to get trampled like a dog and return with blue-blacks everywhere. Then the cycle repeats itself the next day. If Astaroth didn't find her vain struggles pointless, she would have thought it was cute and naive. Seeing that girl continuously picking fights with others when she's scrawny and weak, just to come back in defeat every single time. It was some form of entertainment in this boring world.

"Really? But she should be back by now..." her sister frowned, destroying the absolute masterpiece that was her face.

"Maybe she decided to run a little extra," Astaroth shamelessly lied.

But she wasn't running any extra miles. She's probably having her legs broken by those childish boys. Not that Astaroth cared if she lived or not. In fact, it would be even better for her if that traitor died. Like this, Sister Luna would only ever belong to her. She didn't need to share her with other insects anymore. All her goddess's attention would be on her.