The keepers of innocent light wandered across the land, bright and vibrant, ready to take on the world one step at a time. They were sweet, and strong enough to be gentle. Within their grasp, they held the power and destiny to behold the vibrance of life.
But for every ray of sunlight, there must always be a cast shadow. Born to hunt, dark beings towered over the keepers, preying on them one by one, dwindling their population slowly, but significantly.
A power the giants were not aware of was the unique ability of the keepers to send emotional pulses to one another, signaling danger for others to beware. Still yet to hatch, Bibe heard dozens, hundreds of her siblings get murdered, their lives taken away mercilessly for entertainment and joy, while they begged for mercy.
Born under the shadow of encroaching death, Bibe burst forth from her egg, encasing herself in a reality bubble. There was only one singular desire that played in her mind over and over again, like an endless loop. While others might have sought out revenge, Bibe only wished for the status quo to return, for her duck siblings to roam free in the fields they once basked in.
While secluded in safety, Bibe began to imprint herself onto the human world with only one goal, to bring back what once was. She lured humans into her realm, turning them into bibekos that loved and spread joy together. Bibe wished for nothing more than to provide a place of warmth and safety, vowing that nobody would ever get hurt under her watch again, that not a single pulse of despair would ring through her soul.
Even though most bibekos enjoyed their stay, there were always a few who wished to return to their old lives, or had simply grown tired of constant sunlight and entertainment. What they were not aware of was that every time a seed of doubt was planted in their minds, the light keeping them safe would beam even harder, burning away such unnecessary variables.
For their own safety, Bibe would confine them in conditions that encouraged them to stay, giving them overflowing amounts of what they once had, as if it were her own way of convincing everyone that the place by her side was paradise.
But the truth was, whenever the rebelling bibekos saw her after snapping out of the trance of perpetual sunlight, they were met with a sight they never would have expected to behold. The second face of the maiden they loved so dearly watched every breath they took, with prying eyes that never left them alone.
Having been born in such conditions of darkness, yet wishing for nothing but joy and happiness, her heart had been torn in two, creating opposing forces within one body. It was not a dual personality, but one side fighting the other in an endless war for control. The pendant around her neck served as a suppressor of her overwhelming obsession, but sometimes, when caught off guard by the mere suggestion of unhappiness, her second side would emerge.
Of course, in Bibe’s mind, it was never her intention to torment her bibekos, only to shower them with more love. But when the suppressor was not fully active, the contained pulses of her dead siblings would ring once more, sharp and suffocating, forcing the bibekos to confront flashes of the crimes committed against them.
The sensations were not distant memories, but vivid and inescapable, as if their own bodies were being torn apart again and again, their pleas echoing endlessly with no one to hear them. Trapped within those moments, they relived the events of the purge as the victims, until their minds eventually submitted back to Bibe.
Each smile was a deception, and each word carried a double meaning. Deep inside, the bibekos did not know how to trust their master. Out of fear of the pulses ringing again, all of Bibe’s subjects came to an agreement to remain on their best behavior in order to keep her satisfied and happy. If none of them rebelled, then her “bad side” would not surface either.
Unfortunately, within Bibe’s domain, even if one were to speak in a secluded location, whispering so faintly that only an ant could hear, Bibe knew every single action her subjects took.
PART 2:
Finally understanding that she needed to take far more drastic measures, and to ensure that even if one were to escape, they would never leave her line of sight, she forced every single one of her subjects to surrender their flesh, mutating them into creatures that carried distinct markings of her existence.
Yes, there was no hatred in her heart whatsoever, no ill will for those who hurt her family. She simply wanted new ones, and for that, she did her absolute best to make them happy. Because if they were happy, what reason would they ever have to leave? Through the use of her light based powers, she harnessed intense heat to melt down the very physical properties of her subjects.
Being reduced to nothing but small, golden duck yolks, the bibekos lost all sense of their own identities, and were turned into bibelings. Although each one was still distinct in subtle ways, such as personality, their overall physical appearance became almost unnervingly uniform.
Little did they know, this new form would slowly twist their minds into beings that lived only to obey, as over time, what began as feigned ignorance turned into the genuine loss of memory, sanity, and even their sense of reason.
Their realities would be replaced with new ones, as the memories they once carried began to feel false, and brand new revelations illuminated their minds. A strong sense of duty overfilled their hearts, to protect the one who had been guarding them this entire time. Taking up arms, they intended to defend Bibe with all their might, even if they had to give up their own lives in doing so.
Not willing to accept a reality where she would be the one protected, Bibe began experiencing memory replacements of her own. With the clash between her desires, and the strain of overusing her authority of light, she inadvertently began to gain memories of a life she once had, the role she was meant to fulfill before she was born into such a cruel, cold world that took everything from her.
This was when she revealed the truth. All this time, she had assumed that the pulses she heard, the cries of her siblings, were a trait her people shared, but that was far from the truth. Being an Aspect of Light, those powers were exclusively hers. The pendant was created by her in a time of distress, in hopes that the truth would be revealed one day.
In an ideal world, she was meant to be born, live a peaceful life, and eventually lead the duck-folk into a long era of prosperity. The role her people were given was called the “Keepers of the Light.” But the reason they fought so fiercely, and remained so devoted to their roles, was to protect Bibe all along.
Everything had gone wrong, and nothing had followed according to plan. They were slaughtered one by one, and Bibe had to endure the sounds of splattering blood and crushing bone for countless years before her emergence. As a final resort, the last of the Keepers banded together to create an artifact, a golden egg that would protect their savior no matter the cost. When Bibe finally hatched, the magic, which contained the souls of the fallen keepers, burst forth, creating a pocket world where Bibe would remain safe for eternity.
With the bibekos being turned into bibelings, their wills were unwillingly merged with the same Keepers who had intended to protect Bibe. No matter how hard they fought, the imprints of those who came before them remained.
As for Bibe, she needed to honor her siblings that passed. And in her mind, why would it matter if the wills of her bibekos were being replaced? It was a complete win-win. She got her siblings back, and kept the fans she had come to love so dearly, not understanding that by keeping both entities within one body, she was subjecting both the Keepers and the bibekos to a fate worse than death.
None of this was of consequence to Bibe. Since the reborn Bibelings were created from a piece of her own soul, she was able to rewrite their realities, memories, emotions, and sense of being whenever she wanted. While she believed she had ascended into queenhood, she had in fact become a cruel tyrant, masking her control as benevolence. In the end, however, she never once thought what she was doing was wrong. All she wanted was to protect the ones she loved.
After her self-ascension, her suppressor finally faded, merging both aspects of herself into one. A complete package who carried no shackles to weigh her down, and no doubts to control her.