Harm and Harmony

-Chapter 26-

Day: 4

Days Left: 5476

Lives Saved: 0

It was not the reaction that Ivette had expected. During her imprisonment in The Eternal Abyss, the old trader had taught many new inmates and revealed the truth about the monsters: the monsters that everyone had been told to fear were, in fact, human.

When new prisoners learned this, most would break down, recalling the barbaric and inhumane acts that they committed against those monsters in the name of survival; or they simply cried out in fear of becoming a monster themselves. Others remained in a state of denial, even after the truth was proven and chose to ignore it, perhaps as a coping mechanism for when they inevitably have to fight these 'monsters'. 

But the reaction of the young woman that stood before Ivette was something the old trader had never seen, nor expected. Corinna's face was void of any emotion or expression, unreadable to Ivette. It was cold and blank, almost mistakable for a mannequin or a statue if the young woman had not blinked.

"The humans that are now monsters were they originally inmates like us?" Corinna asked.

"Yes." Ivette nodded, unsettled by Corinna's flat and robotic voice.

"How did they turn into monsters?"

"With these..." Ivette produced a mask that she had been hiding underneath her blanket. She handed it to Corinna, who examined it from every angle. The mask was a complete replica of Ivette's face in minute detail apart from the eyes as there were only dark empty sockets in its place.

Corinna returned the mask back. "I'm assuming you put it on and you transform?"

"It depends on the mask." Ivette covered her mask back under her blanket. "A few will transform you immediately, others you can control it at will. I would demonstrate, but since it's so close to the blood moon, I may end up attacking you. Has the chimaera- has Harmony explained about the blood moon?"

"Yes, she has." Corinna paused. "I still do not understand why anyone would choose to wear them."

"Sometimes, you have no choice. You have to risk your mind and sanity for your own survival." Ivette felt her mask underneath the blanket, letting her fingers trace around the dimensions of the replica of her face. "Sometimes it calls to you."

"The mask?"

"It will call to you for you to wear it. And during blood moons..." Ivette paused, feeling the two dents on her mask, where her eyes should have been. "Everyone will wear their mask. No matter how far you hid it, or how much will-power you possess, on a blood moon, everyone will be monsters."

"And they'll try to kill everyone they see." Corinna nodded. "Where do you get them from?"

"They're delivered through the portals. Specially designed for each individual. You'll be given one eventually. It might be being created as we speak."

"I refuse to wear them. Apart from during blood moons, of course." Corinna clutched her waist, her nails digging into her skin. "I won't become a monster."

"It varies from mask to mask, but they grant you extraordinary strength and gifts, you will likely need it to survive against others who were easily tempted by such power."

*

Corinna remembered what strength and abilities Harmony had, even when she was starved and wounded, she could easily overpower any human. There was also how quickly her body healed. Depending on the mask that she was given, Corinna decided not to completely dismiss the idea of wearing one. If her transformation into a monster granted her any useful or practical qualities of survival, then it would be illogical to discard it. Hopefully, she would have control during blood moons, just like Harmony.

"Of course, those upstairs, in the human realm, don't give us these powerful masks without a price. If you wear it for too long, you'll find it difficult to turn back. You'll eventually lose your mind and be a monster forever."

The risk was easily avoidable, Corinna thought. All she had to do was wear the mask for short durations.

"You'll become a monster, driven by an insatiable hunger for violence," Ivette continued. "Unable to think... unable to speak..."

"Harmony..." Corinna looked back where the chimaera was sat in front of the counter, rummaging through a box. "She's worn her mask for too long." The young woman turned back, noticing the old trader's hands quivering and fidgeting.

"I hoped that since you're here, my dear..." Ivette adjusted her blanket. "That perhaps the chimaera- that Harmony had not given up on her own humanity. Perhaps, one day, she will talk again." The old trader gazed up at the young woman, her eyes misted.

Corinna's face finally relaxed, a slight smile emerged. "Of course, I'll help her."

"You mustn't force her though," Ivette croaked, then cleared her throat. "I have tried many times, but she always refuses. It must be her decision to take off her mask."

Corinna nodded, then looked back at the monster. "We should be heading off. Have to prepare for the blood moon tomorrow."

"Of course, of course," said Ivette, following behind Corinna, returning back to the front of the shop, where Harmony was still sat, waving at them.

Stopping in front of the counter, Corinna turned and smiled, bowing her head slightly. "Thank you, Ms Ivette, for trading with us. I- we appreciate it very much." She shot a glance at Harmony signalling that the chimaera should also issue a 'thank you' of her own.

Without looking away from the tradable items in the box, Harmony gave a thumbs up in Ivette's general direction.

"No manners," Ivette tuttered.

The monster growled, baring her teeth, then relented once catching Corinna's glare. Harmony scribbled the words 'thank you' on the whiteboard around her neck, then waved it in the air to show Ivette.

Ivette ignored it.

"Do come again, my dear." Ivette held Corinna's gloved hands. "You are welcome to trade here anytime." Then she pulled the young woman closer and whispered, "and you are also welcome to stay here if your current living situation becomes... unlivable."

Corinna nodded and thanked Ivette once again, then left the shop with Harmony.

*

The old trader watched the two figures of the human and the monster until they disappeared over the horizon of the wasteland. Her eyes drifted down to her mask that sat on her lap. Resisting the call, the whispers, knowing that she was not ready, she closed and bolted all of the warehouse doors and locked herself in, prepared for the blood moon, for when she would turn into a monster.