EPILOGUE

 Perfect World

            Narcissus was a beautiful man. He had two impeccably round eyes without those pesky lashes or brows that other humans had, his skin was flawlessly white and his body structure was the epitome of perfection. Only a god could be so elegantly sculpted that his flesh gripped firmly around every bone in his body, and only a god could be so faultless that his hair shot up out of his head in crimped black tendrils. For ages now, he’d looked upon this face and reveled in its beauty. Shallow cheekbones, thin jaw, lips that weren’t too pink or stretched unevenly beyond the width of his nose. And his nose! Oh, it was also skillfully molded. Not a single unnecessary piece of skin was formed there, not a piece of cartilage or a strand of disgusting hair.

            Yes, Narcissus was indeed beautiful, and everyone that saw him seemed to express this by cringing or shrieking in delight. But of course, his immortal host was too precious to be seen walking amongst the land of the living. He was blessed with the comfort of a dark, underground cavern where he stared into the Fountain of Youth all the days of his life.

            Today was like any other day. He sensed the rising of the sun, he heard the whispers of the few hundred or so humans who plagued the earth, and he stared extra intently at his reflection. What would he do today? He probably needed to eat something, and he could use some exercise, too, but no, this image was too lovely. He couldn’t turn away just yet. A little while longer, only a few minutes more, then he’d look away.

            Eight thousand years passed and Narcissus remained exactly where he sat, cross-legged in front of the burning blue bush where so many others had been devoured by its flames.

            “Such… such excellence…”

            He lifted his hand and allowed the blue embers to bring warmth to his faultlessly cold fingers. It didn’t hurt, even though it was fire, and when he touched it, his perfection became all the more enticing.

            “I’m… I’m…”

            There was the sound of howling wind and thunder, and suddenly the chamber flashed with what seemed to be lightning. A new presence was there with him. One of the immortals? He slowly looked to his left, taking delight in his pleasantly aching neck, and the most hideous immortal of all stood before the burning Fountain of Youth.

            He was soaking wet, his disgusting, long black hair dripping all over the cave floor. Narcissus remembered one other time when Monaxia had come here in this image. His skin was green and his eyes seemed to glow like the fiery pits of Hell. There was a young woman in his arms, and he’d begged Narcissus to allow him to cast her into the Fountain lest her life be taken.

            Now, Monaxia was alone. His skin was green again, and he wore a large sheet of maroon cloth. He approached the burning bush, fists clenched and eyes wild with rage.

            “Mo… na?” Narcissus whispered.

            Mona ignored him, and instead proceeded to shout at the precious Fountain. “Why did you do this?” the Atlasian monster demanded. “You saved me from the pit but left Ari’el there to die? How dare you! She was mine! You gave her immortality so I wouldn’t be alone!”

            There was a flash of black and white, like an old television screen, and the fat man Gal appeared. He was also the most hideous immortal to have ever been cursed. In fact, everybody was hideous. Everybody in the world. The only person that was beautiful was Narcissus.

            Gal tried to calm his furious companion. “Please, Mona, show some respect! Do you have any idea who—?”

            Monaxia sneered. “I was eighteen years old when I sold my soul to Him. I was eighteen and alone, trapped on a foreign planet with strange creatures that wanted to kill me! What else was I supposed to do? He promised me power and knowledge in exchange for a life of eternal damnation.”

            There were tears Mona’s his eyes. He was breathing heavy, and when he turned back to face the fire, he looked more overcome with despair than anger. It was grotesque.

            Narcissus disregarded them and turned back to his impeccable reflection. What a pain. Normal humans weren’t allowed here anymore, but that didn’t stop the immortals from stopping by to shout curses at their Master.

            “Why?” Mona cried. He fell to his knees before the Fountain of Youth and allowed the flames to completely encompass him. “All I want to know is why you did this. Why must I suffer? Why must I always be alone?”

            Narcissus glowered. The floor was beginning to tremble, the indication that their Master was going to speak. Soon the entire cavern would be filled with a blinding white light, and Narcissus wouldn’t be able to see his reflection.

            Seconds passed, the fire grew and light gleamed all around them. Suddenly, Narcissus, Mona, Gal and the burning bush were alone in what appeared to be an endless white room.

            And then He spoke, and His voice was a peaceful melody.

            “There are some who work better when they’re alone,” the Master said. “Now go out into the world and build another fine garden, and in time, we’ll watch it build up and be torn down again, just as it was before.”

            Narcissus arched a brow. What was their Master talking about?

            He turned to Mona, and the hideous man looked horrified. He scowled, then he stood to his feet and kicked the burning bush with enough force to uproot it from the white floor.

            Narcissus stared, wide-eyed.

            The white light faded, the cave walls returned, and the burning bush was exactly where it’d always been for the past nine thousand years.

            He released a heavy sigh of relief, glad that his reflection still shone so brilliantly, and continued to stare as Mona cried out and raged and finally disappeared, leaving a storm of heavy showers and thunder in his wake.

            Still, the Fountain continued to burn.

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Dear Glorious Readers,

I've edited this story to be more similar to the original Hello I have uploaded onto SorrowHasNoHANDhere... the updates for this story are called "Perfect World" and have finished being uploaded. The reason I'm doing this is because I'd like to try out for the watties! I hope to have your support, and thanks so much for your patience! I hope you enjoyed the story, and I hope that it was better than the original Hello. If you have any thoughts, questions or concerns, please feel free to comment! I always love comments :)

Thanks again, and have a pleasant day!

Live Long and Prosper,

Asgardian / SorrowHasNoHANDhere