Week 7, Title: Of Gods and Monsters

She watches her former charges stand in a line, their woman-child bodies stretching upwards, waiting to see who will be chosen. Some look at the floor, some straight ahead, some of their heads tilt down with their gaze straying towards him. One turns to her, she holds the gaze; she owes the girl this much. It’s said that the one who stands before them, eyeing these offerings, is a God. Some of the girls are believers and some are not; she’s still unsure which is best for them. Her chest aches from weariness and her eyes sting from too much time. Her joints groan against each other and her fingers, resting on her walking stick, throb.

The audience are indifferent. They have been raised with this yearly ritual. It is separate to them, doesn’t touch them, they are inured. She remembers long ago when they would look upon her with disgust and fear and misses those days; the days when the younglings they gave up still affected them.

For decades she raised these children to give them away.

The one making his choice may be a God, or he may not be. But she knows one thing for certain: he is a Devil too.


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