She looked at the hooded figure standing next to her and sighed. Somehow what they were about to do did not sit right with her, but she chose not to interfere with his work just as he had done while they worked together. She even lost track of time of how long they had known each other, was it months, years or maybe even centuries that she had been with him and working with him hand in hand.
“Do not give me that look, it is just a way of restoring balance”, he said noticing the forlorn look on her face. Somehow she had not grown accustomed to the fact that even after so long, all beautiful things come to an end, maybe because she was the one who birthed them, the one to watch every step all the creations took only to have it all taken away by the cloaked figure next to her, sometimes too soon and sometimes watching her handiwork suffer for an uncertain period of time. There were times she was thankful that he did indeed bring a full stop to a life she had created only to see that it was drowned in sinful karma, to put a stop to atrocities and pain her invention would bring to mankind. Other times, like this one, she would feel helpless in not able to stop him taking away every breath. This one particularly because she was proud of her work, of the creation she had borne with love.
They approached the hospital ward, unseen. It almost pained her to see a young mother in labour, surrounded by family, praying she would make it. As he gazed at the tired, but hard at work mother giving it her best to ensure the safe delivery of her child, his expression softened.
He looked at his stopwatch, the mother did not have very long and neither did the baby. She watched his expression and understood what he meant to do. She clicked her fingers only to have the stopwatch in the bony hand show more time in his hands. They stood there patiently by the glass window as the mother gave it her all. The family rejoiced to see their mum fight back only to have their victory short-lived. Though the baby was born healthy, the mother did not have much time left. The husband now grasping his wife’s hand with tears streaming down his face, unsure of whether to cry with joy that his child was healthy or to moan the loss of his beloved wife.
The duo standing at the window saw a butterfly flit by, landing on her hand before settling on his head as if thanking them to extend her life. The soul collected, the job done, the two decided to head back.
“No matter how long we have been at work, incidents like these always leave a bitter aftertaste”, she sighed. He simply looked straight ahead, trying not to cry, only to have his attempts fail.
“We can be so cruel, just to complete our work and yet people prefer you over me”, he lamented.
“That is because I am a lie, a beautiful lie that people live in their heads. I am preferred over you for the very reason that I am an illusion. People are terrified of you because you shatter their illusion of a perfect life”, she said quietly as they walked back to the twilight zone.
Just Breathe. 