Gaea's Choice


Written June 1997





Small and transparent, it flew fast and swift, like the wind on a clear sunny day. None could see it as it flew gloriously high, reveling in the feel of the wind and sun all around it. The soft blue aura around it blending in with the endless azure sky, it soared faster and faster, then dove downwards, skimming the treetops. Aided by an unseen force, across the velvet carpet of green it glided, wingtips brushing the jungle canopy. Then, with a quick and agile movement, it folded its wings and was swallowed by the emerald depths of the forest. It landed, a warm glow causing it to form wholly again and perched on a branch jutting out from a surprisingly symmetric clearing covered ony by crisscrossing branches concealing it above, though allowing soft shafts of sunlight to peer through. A soft roar echoed from the miniscule waterfall at one end of the clearing and butterflies danced everywhere - on plants, flowers, and gentle currents of air. It blinked and fanned its wings expectantly.

A green mist blossomed out of the air, then condensed, forming a woman of brown skin like the earth and white hair mottled green. Her face, through the infinate wisdom twinkling in her sea blue eyes, shone golden with endless youth. She approached a rock next to the branch, gliding like a wraith on an unfelt breeze. As she looked upon the lizard-like creature, her normally joyous face grew sad, and regretful.

"Ahh, my little dragon-friend, " she murmured, reaching up a hand to run a finger along its barely visible backridge.

"Yes, m'Lady Gaea? You summoned me from the plane of nonexistence?" The dragon smiled, leaning into her hand.

"Aye, I did, " she sighed. "You have known the faces of the humans in your time. Your kind was wiped from this plane because of them. They judged you not on your character, but only by your long fangs and claws....and it is your noble and good nature I call upon to do me a favor."

"Anything, m'Lady. You have but to ask." The dragon, canting its head curiously, watched as Gaea stood and paced a bit.

"This was long in the making..perchance I left them unattended to for too long, and that is when they went astray..or perhaps it is my fault for breathing them life in the first place..but it must be done. It must, for the sake of all my other children.."

"As you favor none more than the rest?" The dragon queried, blinking.

"Aye, as I favor none over the rest. Even now, they grow closer to my sanctuary, here, in my beloved rainforest, the very heart and soul of my workings..and when they find it, all of my creation will be gone..gone, like ashes scattered on my son, the wind. And then, even then, they will not care, sitting high and proud in their machines of iron and oil - the oil I gave them for warmth on cold nights, as I selflessly gave them my treechildren to build shelter from the elements of my womb. But they do not realize..no, they don't realize that their machines will not keep them fed forever. And once I am banished from here, nothing will remain...."

The dragon, looking morose, shook its head sadly. "And why do you need me, Mistress? I am not big, like my dinosaur cousins, so I cannot make the ground quake ferociously, and I cannot swim deep, like some of my Kin, so I cannot cause huge waves to batter the shores. I am too tiny to breathe fire and set ablaze their glorious glass cities....and I cannot stir the winds on high to cause the clouds to build and swirl, wreaking havoc upon the land. What can =I= do, my Lady, to further your quest?"

"You, my little one, " she murmured, running a hand under its chin lovingly and pulling up its head to meet her eyes, "you can do the most damage of all, for your cousins are too big to get in close to the humans, and cause damage within their cities. For these high and mighty humans, the lost children of my blood, have weaknesses. Disease corrupts their bodies and minds, making them weak, and their addictions cause even more damage. But, despite that, they are fighting it, discovering new ways to combat disease and fight addictions. All of those things that your cousins and Kin have done have not and are not working, therefore we must go to the heart of the matter. We must strike where it will hurt, and though I love all my children, I cannot favor the one over many."

Her own hazy green aura radiated sadness as she turned, walking a few steps away, then turning back to face the little dragon. She raised her hands to the sky, then slowly brought them down, cupping them and breathing softly into the hole they formed. A greenishgold light began to glow from between her palms, and she slowly lifted her hands, a small vine appearing around the glowing orb like the chain of a necklace. Gaea, torment on her face, moved forward again, placing it around the dragon's neck, where it shone like a medallion. Grasping it in one claw, the dragon looked up at its Mother.

"What is it, m'Lady?"

"It is what will be my final gift to my children. They wish to know the inner workings instead of being content with the whole, and thus they shall know one of the smallest workings. It is a virus, beloved little one, one that will hit them hard and fast, and with every new treatment there will come a new problem in fighting it. It is as fickle as they, and they will know what it is like to fight off a disease that does naught but wreck the body and tire the spirit. That, my little one, is what that orb is."

Astonished, the dragon stared at what it held between its paws. "What shall I do with it, Mistress?"

"Fly. Fly, little one, fast and strong, until you reach one of their largest cities. There, find a suitable host, and leave the globe with them. Do not worry about being seen - far too many have already forgotten your existance, and those that haven't have been too brainwashed to truly believe their eyes. Fly well, for the future rides with you on your journey.." Pale, exhausted from the strain of creation, Gaea slowly glided back to the rock, leaning on it with one hand and a pained expression.

The dragon sat up straight, knowing the importance of its mission and turned, as if to go, then stopped, glancing back over its should. "M'Lady? As you named my kind Dragon, and all of your other creations upon their Making, what do you Calleth this globe?"

"It is Named AIDS....And may the humans pay heed, for its Name will haunt them in their Dreams."

Nodding once, the dragon spread its wings, taking to the air and becoming invisible once more when it cleared the grove. Gaea watched after it for a long moment, tears leaking out of her ageless eyes. Gradually, her form began to melt back into a fine green mist, leaving only her whispered plea on the wind.. "Pay heed...pay heed..."






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