“Marina!” I yelled out as I lifted her up from the ground, if only by a little.

“Fuck!” Ed yelled out as well.

T-The AFP… It shot Marina. N-Never mind that, I don’t have much time! We need to treat her, ASAP!

“Lune,” Marina uttered, “Calm down for a sec…”

“Save your breaths!” I urged, “I’ll patch you up, just like you did to me back in Sibirus! C’mon Ed, get off your lazy ass and help me out here!”

Ed was just standing around like a fucking idiot while Marina kept bleeding on the ground helplessly. See where using that godforsaken firestarter gets you?! Ugh, there’s blood everywhere, but I can’t find the bullet hole…!

“R-Right!” Ed finally started being useful and ran to get some medical equipment from our bag, “Grim, you need to find out where she got shot. Her chances of making it out of this depend on where her injury lies.”

Obviously, jackass! But due to the fact that we were all practically rolling on the ground to get our hands on the gun, I have absolutely no clue where it is that she could’ve even gotten shot! Thinking about it logically, as long as it hit her extremity, she should be able to recover with enough time.

“Okay!” I started following the stream of blood until I got to its point of origin, “Please, please be an extremity! Whatever it is, just don’t be…!”

Her stomach. Or rather, just above her belly button is where she got shot. The hole was barely visible due to the size of the bullet, but the wound genuinely looked like a second belly button. But wait, if she got shot in the stomach, then that means the baby…

“Oh God!” I screamed out, “Licht… Fuck!”

Ed was confused by my sudden shout, but Marina was oddly calm about the situation. Looks like she too couldn’t quite pinpoint the exact location despite being the one who got shot, so with a somewhat frail voice she spoke up.

“S-So, how’s it look like? From your yelling and weeping it sounds pretty bad, heh.”

“Dear…” I tried to talk through my tears, “L-Licht… the bullet went through your stomach, I-!”

Marina’s face turned from a struggling grimace to a hopeless smile. It was calm, just like it is whenever she wants to console me. She knows full well what I’m trying to tell her, yet she’s still trying to hold in her sorrow for my sake. Her face previously showed she was trying her hardest to hold onto her dear life, but the moment I told her about the kid, she immediately stopped struggling. It was that kind of face.

“I see. Guess you’re back down to one child again, h-heh.”

At these painfully spoken words, Ed was horrified to hear the shocking revelation be handed out to him in such a terrible manner. He was appalled to hear just what it is that he had done to his best friend, much less his best friend’s lover.

“C-Child? Wait, you don’t mean…!”

“Surpriseee…! Cough, cough, h-heh…” Marina tried to sound jovial in her wounded state, “Well, we wanted to tell you in one way or another, but we kinda couldn’t find the right moment to mention it. Looking back, I guess we could’ve avoided this whole situation if either one of us was just a tad bit braver about telling you I was pregnant.”

“O-Oh no,” Ed fell to his knees, “What have I done?!”

While he was regretting his actions, I grabbed him by the shoulder with an iron grip. This of course was a silent action, as I couldn’t find the correct words to say to him, be they words of comfort or those of disdain. He winced when I did that, suggesting he was scared to death of what I’m gonna do to him. I’m gonna…! I wanted to lash out, but when I saw Marina’s saddened expression, I backed out. I’m… not gonna do anything to him. That being said, I squatted down to his level and gave him a hug.

“Don’t worry. I… I’m not gonna hurt you.” I tried to explain while I collected myself, “Something similar happened to me too, y’know. I… don’t want you to turn out like me, y’hear?”

“Grim…! You don’t understand! Marina’s condition, it’s…!”

At these words, Marina interjected to explain the situation to me from a more educated standpoint. Well, both she and Ed are well-versed in the medical field, so they both probably knew the diagnosis before even checking the wound.

“Lune, what Ed’s t-trying to say is...” She gasped for air desperately, “The wound is simply too much to be treated with the equipment we have at our disposal on the island.”

“I’m sure we can find some equipment that was left behind in the prison!” I refuted, “C’mon, don’t do this to me! Just hold on a bit while we stabilize your condition!”

“Lune, there is no way to stabilize my condition. There’s no other way around it, I’m gonna die.” She said as tears dripped from her eyes, “Not just me, but the kid too. This is where our final chapter lies.”

At these words, the image of the Book of Fortune popped up in my head, and the idea that I’d see her end this way made me cry my eyes out. Meanwhile, Ed couldn’t help but feel ashamed at himself for allowing the gun to be fired off. In that moment, a morbid sense of clarity hit him. If only, he thought, if only I shot myself as repentance for the sin I committed, then maybe Lune will forgive me!

Putting the gun up against the inner walls of his mouth, he shakily put his finger on the shoddy pistol’s trigger while I was still giving him a hug. This way I wouldn’t be able to stop him or talk him out of it, is probably what he thought. The clicky and fidgety sounds of the gun were enough to draw my attention though.

“Oi!” I knocked the gun out of his mouth right as he was about to pull the trigger, “What the fuck are you doing? Get me some stitches, I can’t treat Marina alone now, can I?”

“Stitches won’t help though!” Ed cried out, “I killed your wife, I can’t bear to face you! The only way to atone is to inflict the same wound I did to her to myself!”

Honestly! This guy is so scared of facing me that he’d rather just off himself instead? The fucking nerve! I’ll rip him limb from fucking limb if he ever suggests such a stupid idea ever again! I don’t care that Marina’s condition is impossible to treat, when I give you orders to hand me the stitches, you hand me those fucking stitches! Otherwise you’ll just put a bullet through your brain like the suicidal moron that you are!

“You’re not thinking straight, Ed.” I said with a calm yet shaky voice, ”I told you, I’m not mad. You’re my best buddy, right? You just did a… a little goof, that’s all. People make mistakes, but if you leave me here and shoot yourself, then I’ll be left all alone again.”

As I wiped away his tears, I noticed a looming presence show itself within the deepest parts of his brown irises. It was faint, but I noticed it right away because I’ve seen it in the mirror hundreds of times now. This familiar shade of amethyst purple that’s starting to well up in his eyes. No doubt about it, he wants to convert to a Purple Iro!

“Snap out of it!” I slapped him, “You wanna fucking die?! You wanna kill yourself ‘cause you feel bad?! Listen here, asshole, I care about you! Anna cares about you, and everyone else back home! If you really wanna atone for what you’ve done, then by all means, live! Live, and be happy! Live with this regret in your heart until your hair turns gray! That’s the worst punishment I can imagine, ‘cause the way I see it, you’re just looking for an excuse to run away like you always do!”

“L-Lune…?” Marina called out in her confusion.

“If you fucking convert, I swear to the Four Gods I’ll fucking do the same thing you did to Marina to Anna! Don’t you fucking dare give up now, y’hear?!”

Ed wailed and wailed over my harsh words, but I only kept pestering him harder until the purple in his eyes completely vanished. He may have done something irreversible, but he’s still my friend. I wouldn’t wish the idea of converting to a Purple Iro on my worst enemy, so seeing him like this really made me lose control.

“Lune…” He called me by my real name for the first time, ”I’m sorry. Argh, I’m sorry! I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m so fucking sorry!”

“…Tell it to her.” I answered back coldly as I pointed to Marina, “I’m not the one who’s gonna die here due to your actions.”

Ed’s my friend, but Marina is my wife, and she was meant to be the mother of my child. Ed shot her, and now she’s just sitting there, unable to do a thing, awaiting for the God’s to send her to Heaven. Her face is peaceful, and still full of life. If it wasn’t for all the blood spewing out of her belly, you’d think she’s just as fine as ever. I can forgive him for his actions, but I don’t think I have the ability to face him for a while.

“Heh, at least make up while I’m still conscious, guys…” She chuckled, “Ed, like Lune said, it’s alright…”

In that moment, her voice went quiet, and her eyelids closed ever slowly. Wait, did she just…!?

“Ugh, cough cough!” She suddenly woke back up, “Ah, w-what time is it? O-Oh, I guess the Gods sent me back here for a moment longer, heh…”

“Marina…” Ed kneeled down beside her, “You’re gonna die soon. There’s nothing we can do to help you… I’m sorry.”

After this, Marina turned to face me as she weakly gestured for me to get close to her, since she could only muster up the strength to whisper.

“Lune… you were always so kind to every one of your loved ones… Thanks for not getting mad at Ed for me, but this isn’t my only wish.”

“Hm?”

“Lune… Don’t bury me, I’m scared of tight spaces. Heaven exists, I’ve seen it with my own eyes just now. It’s a wonderful place…” She testified, “Look forward to seeing us again someday, but for now please go back home to your real family.”

Upon hearing that my wife and child are going to Heaven, add to that the fact that Heaven is a real place, I noticed the purple tint slowly wipe itself away from my field of vision. Soon after, I felt a huge weight be lifted off of my shoulders, and I appear to have converted back into a Blue Iro.

Heaven? Does that mean she really died a moment ago and temporarily came back to life? The Gods are an incredible bunch, I’m thankful to them. And by the way she phrased it, it looks to me that by ‘Look forward to seeing us again’ she meant her and the kid. Looks like they both made it up there… But never mind that!

“M-Marina…! You are my real family!” I cried out, “Both you, and Nelly, and Cecily… and Ed! You’re all my family! I don’t want you to leave!”

Ed raised his eyebrows up high when he heard me mention his name, which only added to the guilt he felt. If only we were more honest with each other, then none of this would’ve happened! Ed would have surely accepted the situation and explained it further to the others back home, Marina and I would’ve enjoyed our Honeymoon on this island, the kid would be born and the two of us would be debating on its name… And then we’d face Cecily’s wrath, but upon seeing Nelly look at her little brother or sister with a feeling of pride for being the older sibling, Cecily would also mellow out, and everything would be like a dream.

“Dear…” Marina uttered her final words, “Go back to them, and live a fulfilling life. For the four of us…”

And just like that, not a moment later, she heaved a few more heavy breaths before succumbing to her wounds and finally closing her eyelids one last time. We waited and waited for her to get sent back our way by the Gods, but that moment never happened. It was now without a doubt true, Marina Dola had died in the winter of 1033AD.

***

“So, what are your plans now?” I asked Ed while we were carrying her body to the tent, “God knows you ruined mine.”

“…” Ed chose to stay quiet.

“Me personally? I still have a lot of loose ends to tie up. Lune Grimheart has been dormant for a while, but Sol Pandora still has a lot of clients he needs to address. I also need to find a way to explain to everyone how my wife died. Man, you really gave me a lot of work, y’know that?”

“…Sorry.” He said as he carefully placed her down on the bedding, “I-I’ll be getting out of your hair soon. Come tomorrow, I’ll already have departed for Trivis Numerica to tell everyone what I’ve done. Oh, but then I’d have to tell Cecily about Marina, so I guess you wouldn’t like that?”

Would I like that? If I think about it, Marina’s gone now. I’m no longer married, so I could get away with lying and then I wouldn’t have to worry about Cecily being mad at me. Even still…

“You’re free to tell Cecily.” I said with a melancholic tone, “I’m a lying, cheating bastard. Having me get out of this situation scot-free is certainly undeserved.”

“You sure?” Ed looked back at me, “You’ll have a way easier time if I just cover for you.”

“Then…” I stifled my tears as I spoke up, “Then we’d effectively be denying Marina’s existence altogether. I don’t want to do that to her, the person who saved me. My Guardian Angel.”

“…So when can we expect you to come back home?”

“Not for a while. I got a job as an architect and got invited to attend this year’s Archetype Awards held in Abyssus Solis. I’m supposed to be working on The Kingdom of Carmen’s canal that’s meant to separate Entropa from the desert.”

“That’s… quite impressive.” He noted.

“That being the case, tell Cecily the truth. Everything that you know, in brutal detail, about what I’ve been up to in Cardina. After that, tell her to come visit me. I’ll be in Mehdina, help her out with finding it on the map, although it shouldn’t be too difficult to find.”

With this, Ed once again tried to console me, but I backed out and just told him to fuck off back from where he came from. I’m not a saint, I can’t forgive a person for killing my wife this fast, not even if it’s him. Who knows when I’ll get to see him again, but I hope this anger I’m feeling will have withered off by then.

“So you’ve changed your ways?” He asked, “No longer trying to run away, no longer trying to wash your hands of the guilt or responsibilities?”

“That was Sol, a man whose wife was killed by a rat bastard.” I looked at my right hand’s ring finger, “I don’t know that man, he’s dead to me. I’m Lune Grimheart.”