War Angel

• Aminah Zara, Grade 7, Al Noori Muslim School - Senior Campus
• Short Story
• 2021

Excellence Award in the 'Play On Words 2021' competition

A city that floated amongst the clouds, and an angel that came down to the city to bestow it with gifts beyond imagination.
The angel, born of the pure kindness of the people around her, smiled with her eyes instead of her lips, was surrounded by the beautiful navy hair she kept and as she floated within the skies of the city, spread her arms as she gifted the people of the city with inconceivable gifts each time she appeared, once a blue moon.
Rivers of ever-lasting bliss, a tree of eternal youth, and a ram of good fortune, carved from her very heart out of her love for them. Gifts that pleased them and provided them with every need that they could ever desire.
But it was never enough. “MORE!” The people cried, “We need MORE!”
But the angel never looked back, bestowing the gift, then vanishing into thin air, the smile in her eyes thinning each time she came and overlooked the greed growing in them. But soon, they sought for ways to abuse her gifts; drying the rivers of bliss for the promised ever-lasting happiness, killing the tree of eternal youth seeking immortality, and on one sacred blue moon, the angel floated down to the skies of the city once more, only to gaze upon a man who came forward with a blade tipped in lead, who laughed... as he killed the ram of good fortune.
The blue moon streaked red and the angel who bestowed them with love, let out a blood-curdling scream. The man’s eyes narrowed as he dropped his blade, and realising his mistake, he ran. Seeking for an escape from the chaos, but it was in vain, for there was no escape. The angel’s eyes glowed in a blasting light and suddenly her flowing navy hair, bleached into a stony, stark white. Resembling the colour of bones.
The city was lit up in flames, babies crying, mothers screeching and fathers wielding swords to fight off their own demise.
They had finally realised their mistake, and they cried in rue... but then, one person stepped forward and held hands with his wife whose face was soaked in tears and there they stood, before the angel terrorizing their beloved city because of them, and they gazed. Moments passed and another person linked hands with them, then another one and another until the whole city had their hands linked as they gazed amidst the destruction. And then finally, a small boy jumped and held the hand of the raging beast.
She looked at him through her glowing eyes and despite his fear, he held her gaze. Her eyes faltered and suddenly her wrath dimmed and she began falling to the ground, her hair seeping back into its beautiful raven colour and once she was about to hit the ground, her city was there to catch her. They sobbed and she forgave, and as she smiled at them in relief once more, she vanished into thin air.