The Brightest Dawn

Layla, that was the stranger's name. Over the next few minutes, she terrified Dawn with details of the battle between good and evil and how, lately, evil was winning. Normally, people thought of these as opposites of a sliding scale that they could operate between at any given moment; as long as they didn't spend too much time on the dark side of the scale, they were generally good people. In reality, the scales didn't slide. Instead, good and evil balanced on a fulcrum and for every good deed, a drop went into the good side and for every bad deed, a drop went into the evil side. No drop was bigger or smaller no matter the righteousness or depravity of the deed but in the past few years, contributions to the evil's side of the scale have outweighed the good side. As a result, a hairline fracture has developed in the seal that keeps the ultimate evil, The Void, contained. Through that crack, whispers of evil have been escaping and altering people's minds. Temptation to do bad things may be easy for any person to resist but it becomes nearly impossible once the shadows of The Void have taken root.

"If the scales tip all the way, the gates to The Void will open completely." Layla's eyebrows furrowed together. "Once it opens, there's no closing it and all of humanity will descend into eternal darkness."

Dawn stared wide-eyed at this woman with fair skin and auburn hair. She could understand the concepts of good and evil. She could understand that it was imperative to humanity's survival for good to win out at the end of the day. What Dawn had trouble comprehending was what she was expected to do about it. She was only one person. Even if she did one good deed every minute of every hour until the day she died, there were still seven billion other people in the world. Just her feeding homeless people or helping old ladies cross the street wouldn't be a match for the terrible things people did on any given day.

"What would you have me do?" Dawn asked, her fingers begun to massage her temples.

"Untip the scales before it's too late."

Dawn let out an exasperated sigh. "And how would you have me do that?"

Layla's serious expression relaxed into a gentle smile. "You have so much power within you Dawn. All you have to do is learn how to wield it so that it can affect people even miles away. You can dispel the shadows that have slipped through the crack with a flick of your wrist if you wanted."

Dawn's eyes darted up. "You mean I can make my mom and Nico go back to the way they were before? Would it bring my dad back?"

Layla opened and closed her mouth once before speaking. "I'm truly sorry about your father but... there's no undoing what's been done."

Hot tears pricked the corners of Dawn's eyes and she brought one hand to her mouth to bite back the sob building in her throat. She had been a Daddy's Girl through and through, sharing so many interests and personality traits with Hiram. They were both selective with who they socialized with but could talk to each other about music and comic books for hours. Now, because of this Void thing, she would never have that broad shoulder to lean on. She wasn't sure how she would ever feel that sense of safety and security that her father had given her. Dawn couldn't really blame her mother because she wasn't her mother, not really. It was bigger than that, it was true evil in it's purest form. That's what had taken her father from her.

"Dawn?" Layla's voice came muffled.

Dawn opened her eyes, not realizing she'd closed them. She looked at Layla who looked like she was on the other side of a pink tinted glass.

"I knew you could it," Layla continued with the same muffled voice. "Just look at you."
Dawn frowned, not understanding what was happening. It seemed there was a pink tint on not just Layla but on her half of the white couch, on the glass coffee table in front of them, the walls of the living room... everywhere except her immediate personal space. Dawn looked at her hands but they looked like their normal brown color.
"What is this?" she asked, trying not to sound hysterical.
"Looks like a force field to me," the older woman replied. "A cute little pink bubble of a force field."
Dawn let out a humorless laugh and the bubble popped inaudibly. Everything went back to it's regular hue and Dawn could, once again, hear the fridge running from the kitchen and the birds chirping outside.

"How'd that feel?" Layla asked.

She hesitated. "I'm not sure... I was just thinking about my dad and how I wanted to feel safe again and I guess it just happened."

Layla nodded sagely. "This is exactly what you'll need to tip the scales."

"But I'm not even sure I can do it again. I'm really not sure I can do any of what you need me to do."

Layla shifted closer to Dawn on the couch, clasping her hands. "It's not just me who needs this. And from what I've seen in just this little time together, I know you have it in you. Goodness is your second nature, all you have to do is trust it."

Dawn shook her head and lowered her gaze. "I don't know..."

"C'mon." Layla stood and tugged Dawn's hands.

"Come on where?"

"We're going to build up that confidence of yours."