Permanent Scars

Tozu sat alone outside her home. The moon shone down brightly as water flowed around her. She giggled just a little bit. She hadn't lost the child-like wonder she was born with. Her bubbly personality would be amazing to see. Sadly, that would be because you never saw it.

No tragedy had befallen her, no great misfortune dumped upon her shoulders. It was her own way of life. She had never "fit in" with anyone around her. She wasn't bullied or attacked in any way. Rather, she separated herself from others of her own choice. Everyone she knew had some sort of course they wanted to take. They wouldn't outright say it, but they knew that there was some sort of specific thing they wanted to do. She never did. Tozu had found that so many dragons become ruined by their own desire to fulfill their goals. No one else is disappointed, but their own failures have harsh consequences on themselves. The way she saw it, the minute she tried to dictate her own fate, her life was already over.

She distanced herself from anything that could do that. And she was successful. Sure, she talked to people, but it was briefly and only when necessary. But it worked, and that's all she cared about.

Tozu had a notion though. It was small, insignificant, and in the back of her mind. Whatever it was, it meant a lot to her, and she couldn't shake it off. And her significant other noticed.

"Something botherin' you?" General Sora sat down beside her outside her house. She looked alarmed at his sudden appearance, but thought nothing of it. "I know how you feel about small talk, but I just wondered, 's all."

"I'm fine, thank you." It felt good to know someone cared. The two stared up at the moon. "Is something bothering you?" Sora sighed.

"Too much, Tozu. You know war is coming. We both do. And we gotta do it, too. I don't like what's coming."

"They're terrifying, yes, but it's nothing we're not prepared for."

"It's not that. The King's been talkin' to me about war preparations. He says he wants to accompany us."

"I don't understand the problem."

"It's genocide." Tozu turned to him. "I know, it's terrible. But he says what the old dragon guy told him. And we trust that guy. It's Fate, I guess."

"Genocide? And he's the one to do it?" He nodded.

"It might not be him though. I mean, I don't think he would do it directly. He'd order it, or something. Someone out there is gonna do it, I know that. I just don't know who."

"I doubt that any of us would do it."

"It probably won't be because he or she wants to," he said. "It'll be because they have to."

"How so?"

"Dying for their country, or something. They'll do it for some cause. None of us hate changelings that much, I don't think."

"Then that's the way it'll be." She didn't have much to say, but what was there to talk about? It was concerning, though. Her younger brother, Hygor, was an incredibly patriotic water dragon that had recently joined the army. She'd hate herself if anything was to happen to him. She was worried enough about him getting hurt, but this talk of "dying for your country" sounded just like him. He loved Vulden and was confident in the leader, no matter who it was. Hygor was a little dim-witted, yes, but he had good intentions and a loyal heart. That, Tozu thought, would be the death of him. On a planet full of tough dragons, brawn could get you places, but wits and intelligence could blow those places up. Hygor was bound to die sooner or later, but if he kept up this unwavering loyalty, it was going to be sooner.

"It was good talking to you." Tozu got up and walked inside as Sora started to doze off. He'd taken up a bad habit of "not giving a damn," as he called it. It was a product of his decaying mind, something Tozu couldn't notice. Tozu snapped on the light and looked at herself in the mirror. She glanced at the picture of her little brother, pounding her fist on the mirror. I swear it, I'd give anything to keep you safe. Anything, damn it. She would. It would take awhile, but she would.