I Am My Destiny

• Ananya Arunkumar, Grade 8
• Short Story
• 2018

It was the evening, the sun settling down, creating a wonderful pinkish purple tinge in the sky. The early stars dotting the sky, glimmering beyond our reach. A good thing too or humans would have destroyed yet another thing. My prosthetic leg clicked into the comfortable silence as I panted my way up the grassy hill. It was harder without my old leg, made of flesh an bones, something humans could not ever dream to re-create. I glared at my prosthetic in distaste; its skinny mechanical joints seemed weak in comparison to my other leg, flesh and bones. It signified hard work, strength, the sweat and gore I did in my life. The flesh and bones that helped my race to survive. Sighing in relief, I sat down with a humph, removing the prosthetic leg and breaking it in half and throwing it out to the city that made my life once hell. I looked out, far beyond the horizon whilst ignoring the gory view below, which depicted the destroyed landscape. What was once trees, plants and animals grew enormous buildings that spat out carbon dioxide, leaving us with oxygen masks and walking amongst gaunt, pale faces. This only served to live in my nightmares. Doubts still yet clouded my mind although my eyes were trained at the sky. Did I sacrifice my leg, my freedom for nothing? Should I have let us all die out instead of reaping the mistakes of our elders? Of ourselves? I sighed, of course I could always doubt my decisions but if I could travel back in time, I would never change my decisions. Because it is fate, what happen must happen. Karma must never be messed around with. I tore my gaze from the sky and onto the city, where people live their lives, with such a rush they have no time for anything else. The city that had no colour, the gaunt, pallid masks staring me down me every day. I have lived my life, I thought, I have completed my destiny, it is now time for others to complete theirs. I turned to the other side of the hill; I could smell the crisp, freshness in the air, my jet-black hair blowing back away from my face, my nut-brown skin relishing the clean air and my dark chocolate eyes filled with determination. I crawled closer to the other side, stripping of my jacket that held my badge depicting my alliance to the colourless city behind me and flung it towards them. I felt weight rolling of my shoulders. I was free. I owed my alliance and loyalty to nobody. I pathetically struggled to get on my feet, or I should say, foot. I finally stood up, giving my last glance to everything, silently saying my goodbyes to the sky, the city and the landscape around me. I was ready. I limped forward, forward into whatever awaited for me, a new life with a new beginning.