Terrified, I scrambled to my feet and faced one of the most horrible sights I had ever seen. Flames flickered on the burnt and torn remains of the ground. Behind a damaged building sat the priest and Champwan, both shaking, surrounded by a pile of weapons. Alyssa and a blond girl who must be Bella were bleeding and crying in a corner, looking at me with pure horror on their faces. Mianite and Ianite, clearly injured, were cowering from the most terrible things in the area- the Shadows, and Dianite.

"The end truly has come," I heard Ianite say, her voice shrill. I stared at her, shocked to hear those words coming out of her mouth. I had turned against her, sure, but that was because the Shadows said they would spare me if I did so. Now he went against his word. Now everything changed.

Now it was up to me to act.

"Ianite," I whispered, barely moving my mouth so as not to be heard by the Shadows. "Focus on the Shadows. You and Mianite are the only ones who can kill him. I'll distract Dianite. Please don't give up. Not now."

I could feel her tense up, so I assumed that she had heard me. I moved away from Spark and Redbeard, slowly at first. Then, at the next opportunity, I dived behind the nearby house.

"I saw that, Jeriah!" the Shadows boomed. My heart racing, I was unable to turn around and see if he was now going for me instead of Mianite and Ianite.

"What are you doing?" Champwan asked, his voice low.

"What weapon can I have?" I said, ignoring his question. He gave me a diamond sword, and returned to shooting arrows at Dianite. "Aim for his head, would you? So as not to hit me."

I could see the fear behind his eyes, but he nodded in understanding. I had a feeling that he understood what I was about to do.

What was I about to do? Or, a better question, how was I going to do it? Even I wasn't sure. I just had to go for it.

"Remember me, Dianite?" I jeered, leaping out from safety. To my relief, the Shadows were occupied fighting both Mianite and Ianite. I could only hope that neither of them were killed while I was taking out their brother.

"It's YOU!" Dianite yelled, starting to dash toward me. I went to run away, but the Shadows stopped the god before he could get anywhere close to me.

"What are you doing?" The black fog curled around Dianite's arm and yanked him back. "Your siblings come first! Mortals come second!"

Seething, the god did as he was told. "This is a terrible... OW!" One of Champwan's arrows struck him right in the eye. "I have to take out at least the one with the bow!"

"FINE!" the Shadows cried, clearly being weakened by Mianite's lightning. "Just the one with the bow! Then come right back here, you petty excuse for a god!"

My heart rate was faster than I cared to admit. "Champwan, give me the bow."

"No way!" he hissed back. "Dianite's going to...."

I ripped the bow and a single arrow from his hands, and tore over to the other side of the house. I didn't care what Champwan thought. I didn't care what anyone thought. If anyone was going to die here, it would be me.

I didn't have much of a reason to continue living, anyway.

"YOU!" Dianite yelled when he saw Champwan. "Where's that goddamn bow of yours?"

I dashed behind the god, making sure that the Shadows weren't looking, and struck Dianite in the back. "Remember this?" I asked, forcing a smile.

He turned around to attack me, but was faced with another arrow, this one to the face. "I," he snarled, charging toward me with flames in his palms, "won't rest until I burn every inch of you to this miserable ground, and light your ashes on fire afterward. You are..."

"DIANITE, GET OVER HERE!" I saw, to my delight, that the two gods were beating the Shadows. But how long would they stay in control? There was no way to know.

"Fine." Dianite's eyes turned bright red, and he began to stomp toward me. "But only after I see Jeriah dead. He's stayed alive for far, far too..." He gasped as a sword entered his back. I covered my mouth as I saw Spark, the fragile old man, desperately swinging at the god.

"And so have you, I'm afraid," he growled, his hoarse voice far from menacing.

The Shadows let out a scream, his voice boiling with rage and horror. "DIANITE. NOW." I was frozen in place, but I was sure that the Shadows were incredibly weakened at this point. Could I take both of them down?

Dianite didn't move for a second. For one moment, I hoped that he was going to try to help his father, and I could shoot his back until both of them were too weak to continue fighting. But then, without warning, he swung his arm, and a fire charge spun out of his open hand.

Right at Spark.

I knew what was going to happen a second before it did. I saw the fire charge leave his palm, and terror immediately seized my mind. I opened my mind to scream, or call out a warning, or something. But nothing came out.

And then, just when all of my hopes were about to sink into the ground, Spark's instincts kicked in. He yanked his sword up, covering his face. The fire hit the flat side of the blade and ricocheted.

I watched, completely stunned, as the fire charge flew backward, right at Dianite, and hit him directly in the forehead. I heard him cry out in pain, and I saw him fall, almost in slow motion. He collapsed onto the ground and vanished in a puff of gray smoke.

One simple move, and the god was dead.