Shay

When Shay was born, she found herself surrounded by the most brilliant of stars. They immediately rushed her with love and care, and her heart was filled to the brim. As she grew, she learned that she was one of the Asar Bardagi. It was a constellation where stars use their light as weapons to defend purity and rid the grasp of darkness in the world. It was not long after she was born that they had begun to teach her the many forms of fighting with her light.

Her first lesson was to form her light energy into objects. The most basic object was the stick. It only took her mere minutes to conjure up a stick, but then she had to learn to fight with it. She practiced with other students around the same age as her. The first student she encountered dodged her hasty attack and knocked her to the ground. The second took advantage of her hesitation. The third, she patiently blocked an attack and countered with a swipe of her own. It was not long after that she handled the other weapons with the same precision. A smile grew on her face as she grew more confident in her abilities.

The first time the stars learned to conjure up a bow, Shay eyed her weapon with skepticism. Sure, she could hit others with it, but it didn't hold the same power and weight as a sword did. All the students conjured arrows and took to the targets for practice. Shay nocked one arrow and shot. It missed the target completely. She shot again, and it hit the rim of the target. Once more, she shot. It was a bullseye. The other students crowded around her, but her face didn't contain the same amount of excitement as her peers. Not until a fellow star named Morrigan saw her disinterest, and asked Shay to spar with her. Shay was incredulous, but she agreed to the spar out of respect.

Shay and Morrigan nocked and drew their bows. They both waited for the other to move, calculating what to do. Suddenly, both moved at the same time, and watched each other closely. Arrows flew, but none had hit their marks as the two darted out of the way and nocked arrows once more, determination shining in their eyes. This was… different from swinging with the weight of the sword or crushing with a hammer. This required so much more precision. Shay's boredom had gone. She was determined to hit her mark. Morrigan's movements became patterned, and Shay began to read her movement. A single arrow flew, and hit Morrigan right in the chest. The arrow dissipated through harmlessly, and Morrigan smiled at her defeat. Shay smiled as well.

On their first mission, Shay and Morrigan teamed up to purify a star that had become tainted from darkness. Morrigan shook with anticipation and excitement next to her friend. Shay was excited as well, but she continued her calm composure as expected from her peers. They spread their now fully-grown wings, which had stopped itching after reaching maturity, and flew to their destination. There, they found a lone star cowering in his thoughts. His light was dimmer, and they could sense darkness within him. Morrigan quickly nocked her arrow, but Shay quietly observed. It was her first encounter with darkness. They had the ability to sense it, but they never felt it's presence in the safety of Asar Bardagi. There was an air of unease when they sensed it, and nausea crept its way into their abdomen. The star didn't pose a threat, the darkness in him was very little, but he was obviously in distress. Sadness and love grew in Shay's heart, and she watched as Morrigan released an arrow into his heart. The arrow shattered, and the darkness seemed to scream as it dispersed. Light returned to the lone star, and they both watched as he uncurled from his position and looked at them with gratitude. Their first mission was completed. Shay could not imagine forgetting about this moment.

Shay's missions continued since then, as a full-fledged star she completed her missions dutifully. Some of her missions were like the first, with a docile incidence of darkness. Sometimes, those consumed by darkness fight back. Shay completed all her missions efficiently, which surprised none of her peers. Every time she watched the darkness dissipate, her heart swelled. There was no questioning her job and role, and she could not be prouder of her occupation.

It was a rare day when Shay had time off from her missions and she looked for Morrigan to spar with. The two spend their time as much as possible when they are home together, and most of that time was dedicated to improving themselves and defeating their rival. The moment Shay locked eyes on Morrigan, the lights fell one by one in the sky. When they looked up, a huge black hole had consumed hundreds of stars, and its path led it straight through Asar Bardagi. Morrigan and Shay immediately flew to fight it, despite them not knowing what was going on. Other stars joined them, and they unleashed all their power into defeating the black hole.

Stars after stars fell. Shay felt an emotion she had never felt before: fear. She looked on as Morrigan fired arrow after arrow into the darkness to no avail. She didn't realize she was screaming and crying when the black hole came too close, and Morrigan was swallowed into the darkness. Shay conjured up a bow and arrow of her own, and followed after Morrigan, shooting arrows at her disposal. When she reached the mass of darkness, she blacked out.

When Shay awoke, the first emotion that wracked her body was fear. She would not stop trembling as she looked around and found that she was the only star left. Not a single light besides her could be seen. Tears streamed down her face and burned. She looked at her body, and realized that the black hole had scarred her. Darkness runs deep in her body, and it manifests in anger and fear. The first weapon she conjured up again was an arrow. With its light and power, she plunged it into her body, but the darkness hung on. With dread she realized that her power alone could not rid of the darkness within. However, she refused to allow it to control her. She swore, with darkness burning in her emotions, to get rid of darkness completely once and for all. With her fallen friend in mind, she decided to use a bow and arrow in her path of vengeance.

At first, she got rid of darkness like usual, while trying to ignore the burning itch of darkness in her mind. But eventually she came across stars she had already purified who turned to darkness once more. Stars who were shining brilliantly with purity, would later be consumed by darkness. Shay's fears mixed with those dark emotions within. It seemed as if defeating darkness was impossible if vessels for them existed. But if those vessels were destroyed… Darkness would not have a chance to manifest and grow.

These dark thoughts manifested in Shay's mind. Shay's arrows, who had never harmed anyone before, had become lethal. Her first victim fell, and sickness rose in her stomach. Something overcame that sickness however, and it was the slightest emotion of satisfaction. Soon, each arrow flew easier than the last, and Shay had little qualms slaying down anyone that comes her path. In her path of destruction, her justification is that her purge will create a world where darkness cannot reside. The buzzing in her mind didn't allow her to realize that darkness had already consumed her very being, and if she were to continue it will win in the end.