I throw myself on the floor and cover my head. A stone flies over the battalion and explodes to the ground. The ground shakes and unbalances the soldiers, but they do not surrender. Cloud leads the army with the authority of the golden flame entrusted to him, the fury of revenge screams through sharp blades. Fairies and elves surround Hilda's children and tear them to pieces, the glory of victory blesses us as sunlight shines across the emerald sky.

  But the sun has always been treacherous, and I will never fall for its lies. Everywhere I look, stretched-out bodies cover the earth, impaled by loved ones or devoured by chimeras. The artificial happiness of the pseudo-victory of a battle that should not even have been fought will not make me happy.

  I rise as I am left behind. Exhausted, I can't fight anymore. But I don't have to. My mission is only one:

  Find Nia.

  While some run to war, I run in the opposite direction. I ignore the fireballs and carnivorous plants, the vegetable nerves and the rot Hilda causes. I protect myself using bones as I follow the matte presence in the back of my consciousness, silently praying that the girl is still okay. I run, and I run, and I run. My feet are burning. When was the last time I rested?

  The taste of iron spreads across my tongue, my belly hurts, my steps falter. That's what I deserve for not sparing her suffering. Nonsense. I should never have allowed her to follow me into these terrible camps. A lonely, war-crazed heart is better than the death of an innocent. If suffering is to be sheltered, let it be at least to save another.

  Focus.

  I breathe in and let the memories fragment. Nia had stood alongside other fairies and elves, increasing the army's output behind her wards. But when the scarlet flames spread and the mountains disappeared from the horizon, when Hilda's avatar fell and her dragon fought the Golden hero alone, staying behind the scenes would not be enough.

  The trail leads me to a strange structure.

  Black and thorny rocks dig their roots into the earth, as if trees had fallen and stiffened. I enter the only opening I see and find a single tunnel from which the light refuses to enter, descending to the depths of the earth.

  I swallow dry, and step by step, I enter the cave. The ground shakes, more and more unstable. Contaminated water accumulates in puddles, and it's not long before they swallow my knees.

  My vision blurs. Where's Nia? How did she get here? Where am I going?

  Tremors and screams, torments and wonders. Beneath the divine light, fire consumes the iniquity of the Earth and the waters of the sea of stars descend to cleanse it. Visions of events I've never witnessed flash past my eyes, and in a bang, the top of the cave collapses.

  Bones break away from my spine to form a support against the stones. With the thorns that sprout from my feet, I make my way inside the stones and sneak inside the cracks. Down, down and down, until darkness filled my mind and even intensifying my vision didn't help me anymore.

  And within the darkness, black light returns my vision.

  As if the shadow had a shadow, instinct guided me until the stone walls no longer compressed my body, but made way for me to enter the depths.

  And inside her, Nia.

  Roses create a bed around her, mushrooms shine like the golden of the sun and illuminate the place. Green grass, alive plants. I approach her without worrying about the beauty, checking her heartbeat and confirming that she was alive. I look for injuries on his body and see a bleeding, so I leave my backpack on the floor and get the instruments.

  I close the wound in her spleen, knowing that it would leave a scar. With the supplies I took from the army, I bandage the girl's arm and then look for herbs. In that place, however, there was none.

  I breathe fast. Panic spreads, no matter how hard I try to stay calm.

  No, no, no. Calm down. She will…

  She's going to die.

  “I can fix that.”

  A man's voice echoes from the crack where the light does not beat. Squeezing through it, a shriveled figure shows itself.

  The creature is large, stretching two meters above the ground. His right arm is made up of bones, his ribs are exposed next to rotting skin. Dark green eyes cast sickening light, and what was Hilda's body is now the body of someone else.

  He walks towards with slow steps, and from my hands, bones form a sword.

  “Stay! Who are you?!”

  “I am Andreas, The Last Apprentice of Dormin. Do not be afraid. This unpleasant form is temporary, like the body you support. This girl, you want to save her? Act, then, quickly. She suffers.”

  “What?”

  “Amerodaxine and tretaroxine. These are the two plants you are looking for. Unfortunately, I am not able to create them. The power of this body has already been taken away. However, my trip was brief, and I had results.” He raises his hand with a handful of the two plants.

  The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  “… Why would you do that…?”

  “Is the importance of this matter greater to you than your sister?”

  I clench my hands. Nia trembles. So, I pluck the flowers from the hand of the abomination and go to the girl. I cover us with a cape, so the creature doesn't see us, but Andreas doesn't seem to mind and sits on a rock while watching ants on the ground.

  I extract the liquid from the plants and apply it on a cotton pad, then I put them on the purple bruises and fix them using the plants. In total, there were more than a dozen scattered. I grit my teeth. The process is lengthy, but by the end of it, I can see the girl's breathing get stronger.

  War exhaustion mingles with despair. My head hurts. I sigh, relieved, and then drag her close to me and cover her with the cape, letting her sleep on the roses again. I sit on a rock next to him, staring at the monster.

  “… Why did you help me?”

  Andreas continues to stare at the ants. “Life is a precious commodity. I don't need a reason to save someone.”

  “It needs, when you look like this. You're a necromancer, aren't you? What is your reason for cherishing life?”

  “What's yours?”

  I frown. “I'm not like you.”

  “Not yet. But if you can hear me, I can convince you otherwise.”

  “Why should I?”

  “Because, without me, your sister would suffer. Isn't that what you want? A world without suffering? No war?” He stares at me. “No death?”

  I frown. “What are you saying?”

  “The eternal gods have their means of persisting. We mortals have only the flesh. I don't hate it, but I recognize its weakness. It was human determination that led me to transcend the limitation of rot and cross the barrier of mortality.”

  “… You look dead.”

  “And yet, I'm not. You, on the other hand, take a deep breath, feel hunger, cold, thirst, and pain. Aren't you curious how to overcome this bag of meat you're trapped in?”

  “Me… How? How are you thinking or talking? That shouldn't happen. Your soul cannot…”

  “It cannot persist. The authority to change the world only exists because the Creator lends it to us, and to manipulate the spirit, we do not possess it. But there is a way. Another way.”

  “… That can't be right. You cannot surpass the creator. You showed me what happened, didn't you? The calamity that befell the earth when the Demiurge was destroyed?”

  “The destruction caused by suffering. It's true. I cannot overtake Him, but I can create a method where He does not interrupt us; a method where suffering stops bothering you—and so can you.”

  “Why would I do that…? Necromancy is… Simply cutting off a foot to save a hand. Look at you, fallen. What do you think you are doing trying to deceive an omnipotent creator? What could a temporary good do for you?”

  “It can make me overcome bodily suffering. Don't you want to become eternal? Don't you want to make the world a better place? A world without suffering and pain? If so, this is my proposal to you. I can teach you and show you a path that few can walk. A path where death does not become your enemy, but your ally.”

  “… I shouldn't… And I can't.”

  “You are a special case, Wander. Few possess a morbid interest in these matters, the necessary anger, and a manifestation so connected with death as your own. You will refuse, because of the fear you have. This fear, however, will be shattered in the face of the approaching calamity. The Blood Moon will make the world tremble, and the stars of the night will go out.”

  “The Blood Moon…?”

  “Go. Grab your sister and escape to the battlefield. Let suffering corrupt your mind. In the depths of your heart, I will be waiting for you.” He smiles as his body collapses under its own pressure. “I expect great deeds from you, O chosen one of death.”

  The corpse falls to the ground. Plants rot around him, but do not perish. They remain alive, or rather, undead. I avert my gaze, avoiding learning how to replicate its effect. Instead, with no way out, I grab Nia's body and push the stones with my bones.

  My thoughts deafen me. As I climb, I force myself to forget everything I've seen and learned. I don't look back. Step by step, I tell myself that I can't.

  “…”

  But I know what I did.

  ***

  A week passed after the defeat of Hilda. Hoffstein repelled the encroachments of the other Courts and worked hard alongside Sieghart to maintain order. Morgana played an important role, infiltrating some Courts and assassinating specific targets. The woman grows in power every day, and should she regain her status as a royal fairy, her power will rival Hilda's—with the difference that her mind is far more dangerous.

  In the midst of all this, however, Nia and I were left with lesser jobs. For her, increase the emission of healing spells with her music and use water manipulation to replenish the city's rivers. For me, to care for the thousands wounded in battle and bury those who did not survive.

  Work consumed my days, almost as tiring and chaotic as war. Emotions came to the surface and exploded, the elven stoicism that had been expressed in the murals reached its boiling point with the confrontation against madness. Still, we remain.

  Our mother was in peace, fortunately. The money we get for being war heroes will probably support her for her whole life. They wanted to push me away because of my circumstances, but I didn't allow that to happen. Cloud and Sieghart's elven blood problem has also been fixed, but I don't have the details on that. I expect collaterals. Our communication was brief since the death of Hilda—heroes do not have time.

  On another of these days, I put on my clothes and get ready for another shift, but stop when I hear knocks on my door.

  Opening it, I see Hoffstein, Sieghart and Cloud on the other side.

  “We need to talk.” The Hero says.

  I breathe in, then gesture for them to come in. We sit on the kitchen table while my mother sleeps in the upstairs bedroom. The light enters through one of the windows made in wood and illuminates the guests, but it does not touch me.

  On the right, Sieghart. On the left, Cloud. In front of me, Hoffstein.

  The Hero crosses his hands in front of his mouth. “Sorry this is so sudden, we don't have time. You must go to Solace with us.”

  I widen my eyes. “What?”

  “Yes.” Hoffstein says. “I will take Cloud to Dufae so that he can say goodbye to his family members as well. He will study at Solace just like Sieghart. Keeping the company of the boy is important, but this is not the main reason. Being the people who helped in the task against the Demiurge, you put a target on your back. Because of this, you all need to be protected. I will talk to the guardians and professors, but you must move and not look back, so that you are not harmed.”

  “Solace…? Will I have to live my whole life hiding?”

  “We plan to defeat the Demiurge in the coming months, so once everything is over, you can return to normal life. The battle that will decide all this will take place on the Blood Moon… If there is a battle.”

  Blood Moon.

  “… I see. Does Nia knows?”

  “Yes.” Sieghart says. “And maybe it's not bad for you.”

  I face him. Apathetic eyes, but with a bit of enthusiasm.

  It's clear. In Solace, I will be able to study about my power and contain it, just like him.

  “… You know, don't you?” I say.

  Hoffstein stops, then inspires. “Yes. Don't worry, Sieghart didn't tell me. I just figured it out. It wasn't hard, particularly after noticing the traces of dark magic within you.”

  “… So this isn't just about protecting me, is it?”

  “Your power is dangerous and needs to be observed. This is also for your protection. The forces of darkness will not stop until they corrode your mind from the inside out.”

  I breathe in. I knew someday that would happen. It's not a choice. My heart beats in my ears, Andreas's words echo.

  “Right.”