Elijah
We left the cathedral before nightfall.
Eliza said she couldn't stand the way people looked at us anymore—like relics, or warnings. We planned to escape to the Eastern Continent, a place where, hopefully, the men wouldn't follow us. There were whispers of ships bound for it in Aaron's Reach.
We took the forest roads, traveling for two days to avoid fires, villages, and questions. Everything was fine until the third day, when the wind shifted, carrying with it the scent of smoke… and footsteps.
Four men emerged, each cloaked in black. From the look of them, they had been sent to capture us.
"Nico," their leader called out. "Come with us, and we'll spare your friends."
Nico was about to step forward when Eliza grabbed his arm, leaned close, and whispered something. Then, without hesitation, she loosed four arrows.
Chaos.
She ran. I didn't. I drew my sword. It wasn't until Nico shouted, "Run!" that I blinked, hesitated, and bolted into the woods, sprinting as fast as my legs could carry me toward the port city.
We ran blindly, the Shadow Guild hot on our tails, closing the distance as a clearing appeared ahead. Suddenly, Eliza tripped on a root. I rushed to her side, helping her up and grabbing her right hand just as I dodged an arrow by a fraction of an inch. Nico was on her left, also pulling her up by her other hand.
We forced her back to her feet and resumed our desperate dash. We were almost to the clearing when a Shadow Guild member materialized from the trees directly in front of us.
"We are lucky we split up to block your escape," he sneered, addressing the rest of his guild closing in behind us.
I hesitated, then drew my sword.
Nico stepped forward. "Elijah, stop. It's me they want." He turned to the Guild leader. "Take me. Spare my friends, please."
I shook my head, refusing to back down. "No," I said. "We need to end this here. Who knows if they would even keep their word?"
The trees became shadows. The ground turned to a blur. Arrows flew; steel flashed.
Eliza struck first—one arrow found its mark, though another missed. A blade swung at her from the blindside; she dodged to the flank and fired another arrow, killing a second enemy. But as she reset, a stray arrow struck her right in the throat.
She fell without a sound.
Nico roared. He drove his dagger deep into one man's stomach, parried a lethal swing, and slit the throat of another. An arrow zipped toward his shoulder, and as he twisted to dodge it, a stray sword pierced clean through his abdomen. He staggered, vomiting blood, yet still he tried to rise.
I screamed and charged, slashing at the nearest attacker. My blade bit deep into his shoulder—but a sharp, crushing blow to my side sent me flying through the air.
I stood up slowly, using my sword as a crutch. Blood flowed from the corner of my mouth, warm and metallic—a bitter reminder that I was still alive. Each breath burned like fire in my chest, and the world tilted around me, but I forced myself upright and kept fighting.
I fought for Eliza. For Nico.
With one last, desperate swing, I caught the leader's arm. He snarled, and his boot slammed into my chest, knocking me flat onto the ground.
The stars swam in the night sky. My breath wouldn't come.
The leader stood over me, blood splattered across his face—none of it his own. "You should've run," he whispered.
I looked past him, to Eliza and Nico lying still on the forest floor.
I'm glad I didn't.
The last thing I saw was the night sky peeking through the canopy. Then, his blade came down.