"What sense does it make for you to be beholden to those that become nothing more than harmless insects under your shadow at your whim?" -That Voice, Her Voice
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"Are you sure this is your final decision Violet?"
General Veers frowned only slightly but otherwise showed no other sign of disappointment. Violet had decided she wanted to stay with James as opposed to returning with the general.
"Yes, I am sure." Violet's face was beaming as she looked lovingly at James. "I've had enough and if I remain here I fear I will only cause more pain." James smiled weakly back at her.
"Violet, I will stand by my word and support your decision. I have no idea how we will make it work but, together, I know we can figure it out." James's words caused Violet to break out into tears of joy. She reduced her size back to normal and ran to James and embraced him.
Holding Violet tightly, James caught a glimpse of General Veers over Violet's shoulder and froze. The general was holding a pistol he must have had concealed on his person. He was pointing it at both Violet and James.
"No!" James screamed. General Veers fired and three shots rang out in rapid succession. The casing of the last round failed to eject properly, jamming the general's gun. As General Veers fired, James whirled Violet around as they remained locked in their embrace. One of the general's shots struck James in the lower back.
"James!" Violet screamed. As she looked up into his face, Violet saw a small trickle of blood begin to form at the corner of James's mouth. The color was draining from his face as he slowly looked down at her with an oddly serene smile. James slumped over and collapsed onto the ground but was still breathing. Violet followed him down, trying to support his weight.
All of this took place over the course of only a couple of seconds. Violet's head shot up in the direction of General Veers. He was desperately trying to clear the jam from his pistol. Violet gave him no time to finish this task. General Veers was suddenly seized by an enormous hand and lifted skyward.
"You bastard!" Violet roared. She brought the helpless general up to her face. Suddenly, gunfire erupted from the treeline to Violet's right. The recon team that had first discovered James and Violet's location and who had been stealthily keeping an eye on the unfolding situation had opened fire. Their bullets had no effect on Violet's 135 foot massive frame. Ignoring the general in her grip for the moment, Violet turned her head slowly in the direction of the incoming fire.
Although rage was erupting inside of her, Violet wore the same disturbingly expressionless face that she had shown in the hangar only two days ago. She looked down at the three man recon team with pitiless eyes. Without hesitation she strode over to the treeline, General Veers still held tightly in her hand. Violet raised her foot and stomped down hard onto the first man. He was instantly turned to paste under her bare foot.
The remaining two members of the recon team were frozen in terror as they looked up and Violet. She slowly looked down at these two terrified men. The slightest hint of a smile curled on the edges of Violet's mouth. She turned and took two more quick steps, each one crushing one of the soldiers brutally underfoot.
Violet was breathing heavily but was otherwise silent as she stared down at her feet. Remembering that she still held General Veers, she turned her attention to him. Raising him once more to her eye level, Violet glared at him hatefully. General Veers coughed. A small amount of blood splattered across the edge of her index finger. Realizing how tightly she was holding him, she relaxed her grip slightly and walked back into the wooded clearing.
General Veers caught his breath. Intense pain was cutting through his chest. He knew many of his ribs were broken. Looking at the blood on Violet's finger that wrapped around in front of him, he saw the blood and knew one of his shattered ribs had most likely punctured his lungs. Raising his head up to the angrily glaring face looming before him, his countenance was a mixture of defiance and sorrow.
"Violet," General Veers said at last, coughing blood again as he did so. "Please, let me kill you." Violet was taken aback momentarily by the general's request. Her rage subsided enough for her to speak.
"You killed James!" Violet said through gritted teeth.
"No Violet," the general said, now looking down at where James lay. "I shot him but I was aiming for you...But you killed him." General Veers nodded his head down towards the ground, gesturing towards where Violet had left James. She followed his gaze down and her breath caught in her throat.
When she had laid him on the ground, James was still breathing and alive. Violet saw with horror a bloody smear where James should have been. The body, or what was left of it, was a few yards away. She closed her eyes tightly, as if refusing to see the gory scene would somehow undo it. Violet didn't want to believe it. She had been so filled with rage and focused on General Veers that she had trampled James inadvertently when she walked back into the clearing without noticing. Whether James was already dead or not when it happened didn't matter to Violet. General Veers was right: she had killed James!
Violet threw her head back and roared straight up into the sky! Her scream was a mixture of both rage and despair. The sound echoed through the trees, roosting birds in all directions took flight at the terrifying bellow. That release of raw emotion was accompanied by her release of her power. Violet's height shot up into the sky. As she lowered her head back down towards the General in her hand, Violet's stature was now close to 800ft.
General Veers slipped down into Violet's palm as her hand expanded rapidly, actually giving him a respite from her iron-like grip. The darkness that surrounded him was broken as Violet unclenched her fist and looked down at the general in the center of her palm. To her, General Veers appeared to be only half an inch tall. He used this pause as an opportunity.
"Violet!" The general's tone was both stern and severe, the tone that a father uses to scold a child. "Don't you see? You can't control it! If you are not stopped, the whole world will end up like James down there! This must end...you must die Violet."
Despite his tone, tears were cascading down General Veers' face. This is not what he wanted: he cared for Violet as deeply as any father cares for their child, but he cared for humanity's future even more. Violet eyed him suspiciously, she could see that he was crying as he demanded her death. She allowed General Veers to continue.
"Your power is a terrible curse, Violet. It will destroy all of us and in the end, it will destroy you as well!" General Veers attempted to stand up but the stabbing pain ran through his body like electricity and he fell back onto Violet's palm.
"It is all your fault!" Violet shouted down at the general. "You have manipulated me just like James had...just like everyone has my entire life!" The force of her voice was like a hurricane. "I am not the monster! It is you, general, that is the real monster...you and everyone else. Why couldn't you have just left me alone? You made me do that!" Violet tilted her head, gesturing to the ground far below and what remained of James. General Veers didn't need to look at what she was referring to, he looked up into Violet's face with his own filled with sorrow.
"I love you like I loved Josephine," he said at last. "When I tried to kill you it was like pulling the trigger on my own daughter." Violet's hard expression softened slightly at General Veers' words. "Violet, Josephine's death was meaningless...but your death will save the world."
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Violet shut her eyes tightly once again, retreating into her own thoughts. General Veers was right: the only value her life had left was in it's end. It was then, in Violet's moment of deepest despair, that she heard that voice, her voice, come to her rescue.
"It is the world and everyone in it that is the problem, not you." That voice, her voice, was as maternal as General Veers' had been father-like. "It is not your fault that the world is filled with evil. The world hates you, the world wants to use you, and the world wants to blame you for its crimes." Violet listened, but retorted:
"But I've killed so many, so much death and destruction and their blood is on my hands."
"You only did what evil and small men like the general tricked you into doing. You are right, Violet, they are the monsters...not you." That voice, her voice, was like a soothing salve on the burn that was Violet's tortured conscience. "You have, for too long, done the bidding of others. You've danced for them like a puppet on a string with no say in the direction of your own life...and now they want you to die for them. Are you so frightened of disappointing these monsters that you are willing to forfeit your own life just to please them one last time?"
Within her mind, Violet was silent. That voice, her voice, pressed on.
"No matter how much of yourself you sacrifice for them they will always want more...They will never be satisfied. Are you going to end your life before you ever truly have the opportunity to live it?"
"What should I do?" Violet asked the voice earnestly.
"Live!" That voice, her voice, shouted emphatically. "The general is right: you and the rest of the world cannot coexist, they will never stop hunting you and persecuting you. Humanity is evil yet it demands that you sacrifice yourself so it and all of the cruelty and pain that it continues to cause can persist."
Violet considered what that voice, her voice, was telling her. She had never wanted this power; she wished only to be normal like everyone else. She had been taken away from her family, who she will probably never see again. These kidnappers then brainwashed her and lied to her at every turn. When Violet finally did as they asked, she was labeled a monster. When she tried to escape, they ruthlessly attacked her. While their weapons were inconsequential, the intent behind them was lethal. And after all of this, in the end, it was Violet who always ended up apologizing and begging for forgiveness.
That voice, her voice, then whispered something Violet already knew but was too afraid to put into words:
"What sense does it make for you to be beholden to those that become nothing more than harmless insects under your shadow at your whim? With a thought, their cities become as insignificant to you as ant hills and their most powerful weapons are barely noticeable. As long as the world thinks it can treat you like a disposable and vile tool, without consequences, it will. It is time to show all of them just how terrible those consequences can be. Only then will you get the respect you justly deserve."
"Who are you?" Violet's question echoed through her mind. She could feel the amusement of that voice, her voice, as it answered:
"It is me," both Violet and that voice, her voice, answered as one in unison. This realization came with little shock for Violet. It had always been her, giving her the answers to questions Violet was too fearful to even consider. Everytime she had been faced with a choice since this ordeal began, the voice had been there. When Violet had ignored the voice, it was because she had instead opted to accept someone else's decision-making over her own.
"I will never let anyone tell me what to do again." Violet told herself with unshakable conviction. "I will live."
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Opening her eyes, Violet glared down at the pitiful and broken figure of General Veers in the palm of her hand. His words and influence would now break upon her as ineffectively as water against steel.
"I choose to live, General. Humanity, as you call it, will have only two options: follow me or get out of my way!"
"Violet, you will be alone if you choose this path; utterly and completely alone. You will never experience the love you felt with James..."
"James is dead," Violet interrupted General Veers mid sentence. "If I require adoration, I will simply demand it and the world will give it to me." The conviction and finality of Violet's statement shocked the general. He realized, in that instant, that Violet was no longer the timid and malleable creature he was confident he could always control. The general also realized that he would not be able to talk his way out of what he now knew was his impending death.
"Merciful heaven, what have I done?" He said at last.
"You give yourself too much credit, little man," Violet said with a laugh. "The only thing you have done is awaken within me the will to, how did you put it: reach my full potential." She grinned derisively down at General Veers. "You do deserve some respect...afterall, you're a tiny ant who dreamed it could give orders to a human...but, my little ant, it was only a dream."
Violet brought up her hand holding the general level with her face. She regarded the miniscule general with an air of unquestionable superiority.
"I've decided you are no longer a human being, you are now just a tiny morsel of food, nothing more. Now I'm going to eat you..." Violet did not wait for the general to respond or object. She opened her mouth and extended her tongue. Violet began to lick up the length of her palm slowly, moving steadily towards General Veers. He tried to get up but immediately fell, his injuries had drained away all of his strength. He was helpless as he became stuck to the gargantuan tongue's surface that lifted him into Violet's awaiting mouth.
Violet could feel the general struggling as she swirled him around on her palette. She was glad he was still conscious. Using her tongue once more, she slid him on his back onto the surface of one of her molars as if it were some monolithic sacrificial altar stone. Violet felt General Veers' brief scream as only a barely noticeable vibration against the inside of her cheek as she brutally began grinding her teeth together.
Looking out over a Lilliputian landscape, Violet smiled to herself. It was time to punish the world for its trespasses and teach humanity the consequences of crossing her. The world will learn fear, the world will learn pain, and the world will learn the name: Violet.
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It had been 133 days since the world came to an end. Trisha had been keeping a tally of the days: making a mark on the sling of her backpack each night after the sunset. Derek was about 100 yards ahead of her and was scouting to see if the coast was clear. Behind her, the five others of their small party hung back and watched anxiously.
The group had both heard and felt the monster in the area the previous night. The monster, they also knew, could move with such speed that she could be hundreds of miles away by now as well.
Trisha saw the light around her suddenly dim as if a cloud was passing over the sun. She froze. Still looking ahead, she could see Derek had stopped and was also crouching motionless. That's when she heard that dreaded voice thunder over her head.
"Ah! What do we have here?"
Trisha was terrified! She slowly turned her head, glancing hesitantly over her shoulder. Violet was right on top of them! Her massive feet were planted on each side of the large rubble-strewn square Trisha's group were traversing, her legs arching high overhead. Beyond that, Trisha could see Violet's face leering down at them. She wore an excited smile but her eyes were filled with a devilish malice.
Not so tough now...eh? Looks like just another nest of nasty bugs to me..."
As Violet's cruel commentary roared in her ears, Trisha darted to her left. She wheeled around a large block of fallen concrete and started to sprint back towards the rest of the group behind her. Her five friends were already sprinting to their left, snaking through the rubble while using it for cover.
Trisha was only 50ft from her friends when a giant foot, easily 100ft from toe to heel, swiftly stomped down on top of the group. Trisha was thrown from her feet by the impact and landed hard on her back. Quickly rolling over, she got to her feet and took off running.
"Where do you think you're running off to, little bug?" The voice from above asked tauntingly. "Were these your friends? Maybe your family?"
Trisha ducked behind a pile of fallen bricks. Peering over the edge of the rubble, she saw that Violet had twisted her foot up while lifting it slightly. She was presenting the sole of her foot towards where she knew Trisha was hiding, displaying the grisly surface for all to see. Five horrific smears of blood marked where Trisha's friends met their horrific end.
Violet was playing with her; tormenting her. Trisha knew this monster could end her life at any moment at a whim. Instead, she was drawing out this extermination for her own enjoyment.
"Actually, you're not really even like bugs...you are more like tiny helpless slugs. I mean, look at them! So fragile and weak!" Violet waved her upturned foot closer to Trisha's hiding place, laughing all the while. Trisha found the cruel sadism she heard behind that laugh to be far more terrifying than the actual sight of her crushed friends stuck to the massive sole looming in front of her.
Trisha was grim. She broke from her cover and ran to her right. A massive foot slammed down in front of her. Thrown to the ground only briefly, Trisha switched directions. The giant foot came down again with explosive force, cutting off that particular avenue of escape. Her hysterical laughing increased as Violet began stamping all around Trisha; each thunderous footfall missed intentionally but created a terrifying earthquake that was impossible for Trisha to withstand..
When she woke up, Trisha was laying on her back looking skywards. Violet stood directly over her and had her foot raised high directly above..
"You're awake, good. I wanted to make sure you would be conscious during what you should know are the last moments of your worthless life. Oh, I found your other friend while you were sleeping." Moving her hand into Trisha's view, Violet was holding something between her fingertips. It was Derek and he was both alive and still moving. Without hesitation, Violet simply squashed the man she held between her fingers as easily as an overripe grape. She rubbed her fingertips together and examined them with detached ambivalence.
"They're all dead, little slug. No one can help you...You're all alone." As Violet spoke the word ‘family', Trisha saw her monstrous expression subtly shift. Behind the cruelty and malice, Trisha saw pain, fear, and desperation. Violet must have noticed how Trisha's own expression changed from pure terror to one of baffled confusion. She lowered her foot away from Trisha and stood staring at Trisha with a thoughtfully amused look. Trisha's terror suddenly returned, watching as Violet leaned over and reached out towards her. The enormous hand enveloped Trisha, trapping her in total darkness.
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One Year Later...
Violet sat, leaning against the ruins of a building, lost in thought. All around her was the wreckage of the fury she had unleashed upon the world almost a year and a half before. Scattered amongst the rubble were countless disarticulated bones and skeletons: Violet's victims of that day so long ago.
Violet didn't remember this place or the day she brought destruction to it. Those first two months had been a blind genocidal orgy of destruction and cruelty. Violet found it was best not to dwell on those memories for very long.
After those first two months her anger receded. Violet now found herself trying to survive in a world forever changed and scarred by her unbridled rage. Civilization as it had been was gone. The tiny fraction of the population that survived now lived a scattered and nomadic existence, scavenging for subsistence within the ruins of their previous lives.
Violet was not responsible for all of the devastation across the planet. Within the first 4 days of her unstoppable rampage, the major world powers decided to employ their nuclear arsenals against this existential threat with total commitment. Over the next six days, Violet was under constant nuclear bombardment. She was forced to grow to the staggering size of over 20 miles and remained that size for almost a week in order to survive the hellish onslaught. In the end, over 3,000 warheads had been detonated across the globe, many in the multi-megaton range. Both cities and vast stretches of land were obliterated or turned into poisonous wastelands by the radioactive fallout. Even now, 18 months later, there were numerous 'hot' areas that Violet feared to enter.
The survivors of this apocalypse adapted to their new way of life as well as to Violet. They kept to the shadows and remote places of the Earth and, most importantly, out of sight from Violet. She would routinely find evidence of their existence: recently abandoned campsites, old campfires that were still smoldering, and movements from the shadows that she would only catch out of the corner of her eye.
Violet was also forced to adapt to this new world. Although she tried to remain as a terror-inducing and unstoppable titan as much as she could, the scarcity of food required her to reduce her size back to normal when she needed to eat so she could get the most from the meager amounts she was able to either find or hunt. These were dangerous and frightening moments for Violet and they filled her with ever mounting paranoia. During those times she was normal, she was small and vulnerable. She feared, more than anything, retributive attacks from the survivors when she was no different than them. Violet found that she was now always dirty and hungry, finding little shelter or sustenance in this new world she had shaped. Through all these hardships, she was alone.
"Not always alone," Violet corrected herself mournfully. There had been a handful that had become her companions of sorts at different times. They had all started out being captured with an eye for later torture or, at best, being a pet. Trisha stood out most in Violet's mind. She came the closest to be what Violet would call a friend.
Trisha had been Violet's age, from some town called Norhaven in Wisconsin. The first week that Trisha was in Violet's company she was a prisoner who, in Violet's eyes, had no value past being a plaything. Violet used a short length of rope and securely fastened it around her captive's waist. She tied the other end around the largest toe of her right foot. Feeling unthreatened, Violet began talking to this inconsequential and powerless toy. She shared her story along with her guilt and fears with Trisha. She also spoke of James and all the conflicting feelings she still felt when she thought of him. For Violet it was more about giving her thoughts a voice rather than looking for some sort of understanding from another person.
"I don't feel sorry for you." Violet remembered Trisha stating plainly, breaking her week-long silence. "So your life sucked...but guess what: that doesn't make you special. Do you really think your pain is unique? Holy shit, I had always assumed you were a god-like monster that was beyond anyone's comprehension...instead, you're just like the rest of us." Violet found Trisha's unapologetic critique and her apparent lack of fear to be intriguing.
She smiled, remembering when she first told Trisha that she was willing to remove the tether that chained her to Violet's foot:
"Are you asking me or just telling me? You really are insane if you think I won't try and escape!"
Trisha didn't run away. Although each continued to regard the other with guarded suspicion, what Violet could only describe as a begrudging friendship developed between the two. While Violet benefited from Trisha's companionship, Trisha benefited from being in the company of a giantess.
Violet's size made hunting as easy as reaching down and scooping up that day's meal. Being in her company also provided Trisha with safety. Violet had been unaware that there were groups of survivors violently preying on those too weak to resist. Trisha described how the region was a patchwork of territories controlled by rival groups who constantly raided one another. These roving gangs would steal whatever they could and kill anyone that got in their way.
It was three weeks before Violet felt safe enough to be at her normal size around Trisha. Upon seeing Violet at her most vulnerable, Trisha only laughed, remarking how she would never have guessed that she would actually be the taller of the two in real life. Recalling that memory from so long ago made Violet laugh. But there were also memories that reminded her about the reality of their relationship...
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Trisha told Violet about a place that had enough supplies to last them months or even years! A nearby town, almost completely untouched by either Violet or the nuclear firestorm. Unfortunately, the area was controlled by a heavily armed gang who protected the town fiercely, the main road entering the town was both fortified and well guarded.
"I've never been, it would take an army to get inside..." Trisha paused mid sentence, looking at Violet. Violet could see the gears in Trisha's mind turning as she stared at her. "Violet? When was the last time you went shopping?"
Trisha nonchalantly rolled a salvaged shopping cart down the middle of the street and right up to the guarded checkpoint, humming to herself. Two large and violent looking armed men who were lounging by the roadblock saw her coming. They grinned maliciously at Trisha as they stood up and slowly began walking towards her. They both carried rifles but kept them slung on their shoulders, unthreatened by this teenage girl and her odd behavior.
"Lost little miss? I'm sure we can help you...it's been awhile since we've seen such a pretty thing as you." The two men gave each other knowing looks and continued to approach Trisha.
The men froze and their grins vanished when they saw Violet. Standing nearly 200ft tall, she purposefully stood up slowly and dramatically from behind a group of partially collapsed grain silos that were along the road about 400 yards behind where Trisha was standing. Turning in their direction, Violet stared directly at the two men and smiled.
"Did you see how fast the fat one ran? I don't think his feet ever touched the ground!" Trisha was laughing hysterically, recounting the events from earlier that day for the third time. She was sitting across from Violet around their campfire. "You were perfect! The way you slowly rose up from behind those silos and just looked at them...There is no way they didn't shit their pants!" Both Trisha and Violet were enjoying a couple cans of condensed soup; just a couple small items from the treasure they brought back from that day's expedition. "I bet the whole gang was running for the hills before we even took one step into town!"
"Yeah, but aren't you scared they'll come back, try and find you?...I mean us?" Violet asked as she laughed along with Trisha. Trisha just shrugged her shoulders at Violet's remark as she took another gulp of soup. "You know," Violet drained her can of soup and looked at Trisha seriously. "I didn't have to let them go. I could have made sure that they wouldn't be able to hurt us ever again."
Trisha's mood darkened. She stared at the half full can she held in her hands for a moment before casting it into the fire. Standing up, Trisha walked away a short distance only to whirl around and address Violet angrily.
"I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy! Is it really that easy for you? Does human life really mean so little? Perhaps I was just fooling myself when I thought you might change..." Trisha shook her head in disgust, not waiting for Violet's reply. None came, Violet just lowered her head and said nothing. They both went to bed that night in silence.
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Violet furrowed her brow as she remembered that night. As if her mind wished to continue to inflict pain upon itself, the memory of that conversation led to another memory of a different night about a month later...a night Violet would do anything to forget.
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"I remember everything about my family, but now, I have trouble recalling their faces..." Violet confided in Trisha over their small campfire as they spoke late into the night. "They must be dead now...and I know I was probably the one who killed them..." Violet buried her face in between her knees and began to quietly sob.
"My family is also dead," Trisha responded without emotion. My parents died in the bombing...incinerated along with my hometown." Trisha swallowed hard and continued, staring into the fire. "My two sisters and my brother, Derek...you killed them the day you captured me."
Violet stopped crying and looked up at Trisha. Trisha was glaring at Violet, her eyes were without pity and filled with loathing. Violet opened her mouth but no words came forth.
"Little slugs; that's how you described them...you probably don't even remember crushing them but it's something I can never forget!" Trisha's voice was icy, her eyes locked with Violet's. "Your family is dead and that sucks, but don't you ever fucking think I'll feel sorry for you...you fucking monster..."
"If I'm such a fucking monster, why haven't you killed me?" Violet's question was direct and surprised Trisha. "You've had so many chances...I'm sure you and everyone else who is still alive would agree that the world would be better off without me!" Trisha breathed a sigh of exasperation and sat down next to Violet.
"I have not killed you because I refuse to become a monster like you. Look around Violet!...The world is shit! If I can bring a little humanity back to this place then maybe I can leave this world a little better off than it was before." Trisha turned and looked into the fire. "Besides, how can I kill my friend?"
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The next morning, Violet recalled, Trisha was gone. Violet awoke and the place where Trisha had been sleeping was empty. Her backpack, along with all of her belongings were also missing. Trisha's absence tore a jagged hole straight through Violet. What made it worse was the fact it was Violet's fault...everything was Violet's fault. Enraged, Violet recalled vividly how she allowed herself to grow until the clouds themselves barely reached as high as her ankles. What followed was another memory Violet wished she could forget. Ultimately, her rage resulted in a new geologic feature: over 1,800 square miles of the earth that has been scoured down to lifeless bedrock.
After Trisha, Violet occupied her increasingly restless mind hunting down and exterminating the survivors that she viewed more than ever as a constant and ever-present threat. Her apocalyptic rage was now replaced by an even more frightening and calculating malice and cruelty. When Violet was able to corner or surprise these groups, she would always torment them first, lording her size and dominance over them for some time as they cowered helplessly under her shadow. Violet was also in no hurry once she had these unfortunate men and women cornered and trapped. Her mind busied itself inventing ever more cruel and sadistic acts that would increase the terror and hopelessness her victims would experience. But, once she had finished her fun, Violet did not give any of these people the reprieve she had given Trisha. She would coldly crush her victims underfoot as if these terrified and suffering men and women were nothing more than worthless and insignificant bugs scurrying from under a stone Violet had just overturned.
Resourcefulness and ingenuity are two qualities that are only strengthened during hopeless situations. As the months continued to tick by, these small groups of humanity became more and more adept at avoidance. Although she knew these people were still around, possibly everywhere, Violet saw these groups less and less. As the reality of her isolation truly began to close in all around her, Violet decided to end her pointless and increasingly futile genocide in favor of a new strategy.
Violet had played with the idea of being a god earlier and gods require worshippers. She decided that she would demand that these illusive and treacherous men and women worship her: they would have a goddess who would watch over them and she would be both safe and no longer alone. Violet had assumed this process would both be easy and that it would satisfy her. She now recalled how wrong she was.
Violet had announced her divinity standing like a mile high colossus over the first desolate ruined city she happened upon. She held her breath and waited. She had stumbled over a few words and the speech she delivered was, in retrospect, rather awkward and clumsy. Violet didn't let those foibles concern her. Afterall, she was a goddess so massive that a single one of her steps could easily erase a quarter of what remained of this large metropolis in an instant. She had assumed that those who dwelt in these ruins would have immediately crawled from their holes and fallen to their knees before her overwhelming might and power. Instead, nothing happened: no one came forward and the toy-like city between her feet remained as quiet as a tomb.
Violet tried this tactic countless times over the following days, always with the same results. These resilient men and women had wisely learned from their hard-won experience that their survival and any interaction with Violet was completely incompatible.
Violet then chose to simply capture people and make them worship her. Terror, fear, and the ever-present threat that she could kill them at any moment were the tools she used to force her captives to become devoted followers. Afterall, Violet reasoned, these insects still needed to understand who was ultimately superior. For a time, Violet revelled in the flood of attention she received from dozens, and later hundreds, of the tiny bug-sized people as they scurried around Violet's feet as she reclined, godlike, upon the flattened ruins of some unremembered city. She found these pathetically desperate and sycophantic worshippers were always looking for ways to please their new goddess and avoid becoming just another red stain on the bottom of her foot.
Their devotion, Violet discovered, was only reliable up until they found the first opportunity to escape. Violet also found the adoration she received from her more loyal followers to be both cravenly hollow and unfulfilling. Dispirited and restless, she chose in the end to unceremoniously crush her followers under her heel as they huddled frightened inside the ruin they used as their temple. Violet flattened the pitiful structure along with all of those desperately praying inside before moving on.
Now, as Violet sat staring up into the moonlit sky, she knew she just wanted simple companionship. She had already dropped all of her divine pretenses and thoughts of superiority, only wishing to find someone she could connect with like she had with James and Trisha. But no matter how kind and gentle she would be, the reactions of those she found remained unchanged. Violet would always be seen as the monster that was responsible for destroying their world.
The clatter of metal from within the interior of a partially collapsed storefront across the street caught Violet's attention, bringing her out of her dreamlike recollections.
"Wait!" She rocked forward onto her knees and quickly crawled over to the tiny storefront's shattered windows. Still on her hands and knees, she bent as low as she could and peered inside as if she was playing with a child's doll house. The interior was black and silence radiated from it.
"Please!" Violet cried, "Don't go! I won't hurt you, please! I swear!" She heard nothing more from the ruin. Desperate, Violet tore the wall of the storefront that faced the street down followed by what was left of the roof. She saw nothing within the ruin. "NO!" Frustrated, Violet swung her arm out in a wide arc. The back of her hand smashed into the buildings to her right, sweeping them away like a house of cards. She paused and listened: the world was silent. Whether it really was someone or perhaps just a figment of her imagination, Violet would never know.
Violet sat back down in the middle of the broken street in silence. She was the uncontested master of a desolate world, ruling alone over the unburied dead.
