The Lady and the Seven

         A broken city lay before a Lady in a dress as white as snow. She and her horse rode into the broken city on the trail of another. As She rode through the broken streets, She heard a moan. She got off her horse and walked toward the sound. She saw a fat man eating from a dumpster behind a long-abandoned cafe. The food was, like all food in the broken city, poisonous to humans. That's what The Riders do when they ride through a city. The fat man didn't seem to know or mind this fact. As She watched him, he slowed and eventually stopped eating as he had killed himself from all the rancid and poisonous food he had devoured. The Lady sighed and shook her head. Another victim of the broken city. She went back to her horse and lead him forward through the broken city.

         The Lady saw a bank and heard coins jingling and a light laughter. Upon entering She saw a young man looking everywhere and grabbing everything made of precious metal and shoving it into a large sack. The man then turned his attention to the large vault. He proceeded to open the vault and enter it, joyfully laughing the entire time. In his haste, he had hit the door and it slowly crept close. The man had plenty of time to escape the vault, but he was far to engrossed in the coins and other precious metals in the vault. The Lady just watched as the man was locked into the vault. She doubted he would notice for a long time. The Lady knew he would not be able to escape the vault before he died. She shook her head softly and walked out back to Her horse.

         As The Lady walked down the street, She next saw a woman sitting on the sidewalk. The woman just stared ahead. The woman was thin and looked unwashed. As The Lady walked by the woman, the woman barely moved her head to look at The Lady. When the woman did see The Lady though her eyes showed fear, but she refused to move anymore. The Lady again shook her head and walked toward the woman. The woman's eyes showed fear but she still didn't move any more than to watch The Lady approach. The Lady touched the top of the woman's head and the fear drained from the woman's eyes. The Lady returned to the street and continued on her way.

         Before The Lady could get more than a few feet, a man ran towards the woman. The Lady watched the man run towards the still unmoving woman. The man began to approach slowly and when the woman didn't so much as look at him, he moved in closer. The man began to look down the woman's shirt and adjust himself inappropriately. As he began to unbutton the woman's shirt and lower his pants, The Lady walked towards him. The man seemed to notice The Lady for the first time. At first, He looked at her the way he looked at the unmoving woman, but then some glint of recognition showed and he began to back away with fear all over his face. He began to run but he tripped over his pants now at his ankles. The Lady walked up to the man and touched his back, and the fear left his eyes like it had the woman's. The Lady sighed and again began to walk down the cracked street.

         The Lady's horse snorted as they walked down the street. A man was further down the street stomping anything breakable and punching windows and door of old broken buildings. The Lady simply continued down the street until the man saw Her. His eyes flashed with anger and he ran at The Lady. She stood and watched as he ran and yelled obscenities at Her. The man punched The Lady as soon as he was in arms reach and began to try for another punch when The Lady caught his hand and gave it a twist. His wrist snapped and he yelled even more obscenities. The Lady looked to Her horse and nodded. The horse reared back and came down on the man stomping him into the cracked pavement. He continued to stomp and The Lady looked on and blood splattered into the horse's legs and the bottom of The Lady's beautiful white dress. The Lady sighed and shook Her head and the now bloody pulp of a man before Her. She then climbed up on Her pale white horse before riding towards the end of the city and the street that was now in sight.

         The Lady slowed as she saw another woman crouching just at the edge of the city. She was watching a tall figure that stood on a hill outside of the city. The Lady moved toward her but the woman ignored Her. As The Lady got closer she could hear the woman talking to herself.

         "I made it through the city just like him. What makes him so special. Surely, I am better, and I can take his place and be the ruler of this town and that hill."

         The Lady cocked her head to the side but said nothing. The city was a wasteland. Nothing but cracked pavement and ruined buildings. The hill outside of the city was nothing special. It was just a small grassy hill.

         "Yes. I will go up to him and he is sure to see that I am just as good or even better than him." The woman muttered.

         The Lady began walking toward the woman with her hand reaching toward her when the woman stood up and ran towards the hill. The Lady watched as the woman ran up to the man on the hill. The two had a conversation before the man took the woman's head in his hands and snapped her neck. The woman's body rolled down the small hill.

         The Lady shook her head and rode for the hill. As the horse and rider moved out of the shadow of the city, the moonlight shone on The Lady and her white dress. The dress seemed to shimmer and the blood and the grime of the city simply melted away. The moonlight shone on The Lady's horse and his pale fur and skin seemed to almost eat the light. The blood on his hooves and legs still remained and added to the terrifying visage of the horse.

         The Lady made it to the top of the hill and dismounted. The man immediately took notice.

         "Well, look who it is. The White Rider come to the broken city. My city." The man said.

         "This is not your city." The Lady replied. Her voice was soft and sweet, almost like a song on the wind.

         "Of course, it is. I survived it. I am the only one who survived it. I am the only one left because I am the best of them. I deserve to survive. No one can take that away. Not even you, Lady." The man ended very mockingly.

         The Lady just cocked an eyebrow. She would not be insulted and then dignify it with a response.

         "What nothing to say? The great White Rider is speechless? I have finally bested you. I knew I would. It had to be me. Only I could..." The man began to ramble before The Lady interrupted.

         "No one can beat Me. No being can escape Me. You are no different. You will fall just like all the rest. No amount of pride will save you from the finality of Me." The Lady's voice was still soft and sweet. There was no malice in her speech, only pity.

         The man just stared for a few moments. He finally responded, "I have beaten You. Nothing can stop me. I am invincible. I am above even You, Lady Death."

         The Lady stood tall and stepped toward the man. He reflexively took a step back. The Lady continued to advance and the man stood tall. The Lady laughed and took something from her belt. The small object grew and became an iron blood-stained scythe. The man stepped forward and threw a punch. It connected directly with The Lady's jaw. The Lady didn't so much as flinch.

         The Lady laughed. "You still think yourself invincible." The Lady's face remained a neutral stare, but Her voice grew darker and more serious. "To me all are equal; All men die when I come for them." The Lady stepped closer and touched the man's face. "Now I've come for you." The Lady balled her fist and punched straight through the man's stomach. He gasped and went wide eyed before falling over dead.

         The Lady stepped over the body of the man and stared beyond the hill. Fires raged in other cities ahead of The Lady. Every day She got closer. Closer to finding and joining Her brothers. The Lady in the clean snow-white dress mounted Her pale white bloodstained horse and rode forward to find Her three fellow riders.