Prologue
“Oh, look who it is. Ms. Rainbow! Why don’t you cough up some glitter? Haha.”
“I can’t believe she actually thinks unicorns exist.”
“She’s mentally insane. No wonder her mother abandoned her.”
“That’s obvious. Why else would Orlando be so consumed by his gatekeeper work? I bet he can’t stand her and chooses to drown in his duties, just so he doesn’t need to deal with her.”
Isighed, putting my hands against my ears in an attempt to block out the whispers that assaulted my sensitive hearing.
Why won’t they leave me alone? Why does everyone believe I am crazy? All the rumors are wrong. Everything they’re saying is wrong. Mommy didn’t leave me. Daddy doesn’t want to work all the time to avoid me. Why can’t they understand I’m telling them the truth about what I am? Why?
I opened my tear-filled eyes as I turned around and ran into the forest. I could hear the lingering laughter mocking me as I retreated.
It made me wonder why I still lived. Why was I brought into such a world if I had no one to turn to?
I was the only unicorn shifter in existence, or so the records claimed. Not that it mattered; no one believed me anyway.
Even with the multiple voices and fingers pointed in my direction, and the kicks and shoves I received from my enemies who never believed me, I knew shifting into my unicorn form wouldn’t stop the bullying. No, it would only escalate it.
I promised Daddy I would never show that side of me unless it was to defend myself or to train. Only my Master could see that form, and he would train me when the time was right.
But when would that time come? When would I be able to prove my worth to a society who saw me as nothing but a burden? Being alone was hard for many people, and I had been alone my entire life.
I continued to walk through the forest as I tried to calm down — allowing my feet to wander aimlessly. It always ended up this way, with me retreating back to the only companion I’ve ever had: nature itself.
I had no friends or relatives to reach out to. My mom was far away, too far for a simple train ride to see her wondrous smile. My father was a gatekeeper, helping guard the gates of dimensions to various worlds. Such a role was usually a birthright or achieved at a young age.
Yet my dad was a late bloomer, only becoming a gatekeeper when I was six years old. Now, at nine years old, I was alone — having to defend myself in this isolated community.
Being different didn’t mean you were treated like you were special. All it resulted in was becoming an outcast.
No matter where I turned, shifters young and old looked and whispered. Some didn’t hesitate to point and laugh. I was the laughing stock of the town, and I would always be, unless I proved myself worthy.
I stopped in my tracks as I felt the first drop of rain fall from the sky. I looked upward, curious about the sudden change in weather.
Drip – Drop – Drip – Drop
The specks of water from the sky above began to fall one by one, until it was pouring down. I stood still, allowing the cold drops of water to beat my flesh as my eyes pooled with tears.
For a shifter well known to be happy and free, I was nothing like those myths.
I was sad...so depressed at my circumstances that I sometimes wondered what was so great about living. My own Council, who should cherish my existence as the first unicorn shifter, discarded me entirely.
As the councilman said right in my father’s face,‘She is nothing but a mistake.’
I tried to stop the tears from falling down my cheeks, holding back the sobs that begged to escape— to be heard by anyone willing to listen to my silent plea.
“All I want is a purpose. A meaning in this world. I hate this life. I want to be strong. To not care about what people say. I don’t want to feel such misery anymore. Can’t anyone help me?” I shouted up at the sky. My hands clenched to fists as I continued to cry, unable to hold back any longer.
I was tired of being pushed and shoved— tired of being hit and abused every day wherever I turned. I wanted to learn how to fight, to be strong enough to defend myself.
I didn’t care if they feared me. I was nothing to them to begin with. I would build my own foundation, a solid barrier around myself so no one could bring me down. I'd prove to the world that I was someone to acknowledge and not cast aside like a piece of trash.
All I needed was someone to help me achieve my ultimate goal.
"Celestia."