The stench of dust clogs my nose, causing it to scrunch as my eyes start to open. Rocks and dirt surround my body that lays down on the soiled ground. My body, coated in brown specks of dust from the landslide. I'd landed in some sort of cave, one side blocked off with large rocks and boulders while the other side was a long tunnel that grew darker and darker. I started to get up, walking towards the blocked tunnel to my right. My legs were shaking and numb but I fought my way up. The rocks were heavily sealed and were impossible to move out while the other side was completely dark, it would take me ages to find my way out. But I had to try something.

My left hands started to slip off the rocks that blocked my entrance to slowly move towards the vacant tunnel. But before I could move further into the dark tunnel, muffled voices came from the opposite side of the rocks. I knew that voice. "Nick!" I immediately started to yell, both my hands pressed on the huge rocks. Movement could be sensed from the opposite end, nearing closer towards me. "Phoebe? Is that you?" Nick's voice washed a wave of reassurance on me, making me weigh a relieved sigh. "Yes! Nick I'm here!" I yelled back. "Is Chase with you?" I add after some time of silence.

"Yeah, he's here but he's not conscious. His head landed on a rock and-" He stops, barely choking on his words. The reassurance from earlier had drained off and had been replaced with dread and worry. Not conscious. Rock to the head. "He'll be fine, Phoebe. I'll help him." he reassures, sensing my terror. I slowly nod, knowing he won't be able to see me. "Is there a way out on your end?" he asks me. I turn back to the dark tunnel behind me and nod again. "Yes but it's pitch black. I don't think I can go through." I respond. He swears underneath his breath. "Okay, umm, we're completely blocked. Just stay there, okay? Don't go through the tunnel." He instructs me. "I'll try to get Chase up so he can help us get out of here." He adds.

My eyes wander around the rocks that blocked me from Nick and Chase. They were all sealed and there was absolutely no way for me to get out. Damnit. "Phoebe," Nick starts. "We're going to be okay." He tells me in a reassuring tone that makes me believe that we're gonna find a way to get out of here. The sound of two hands being clapped together fills my ears from behind me and my attention quickly averts from Nick to the noise. I turn around, swift and cleanly. My hair spins in the air and lands on my left shoulder. My gaze meets a dark pair of eyes, a tall figure with a black robe covering its body while it's face wears a grim, smug smile. Catherine.

She claps slow and lowly, strutting towards me as my back presses against the rocks. "Chase and Nick, always to the rescue." She says, deep and husky that sends a nerve down my spine, causing me to shiver all over. Her expression shifts, making her face more welcoming and soft. Her smirk drops, replacing it with a weak frown.

She steps forward, and for some reason, my body doesn't fight back. Her hand trails up, tracing her fingers against my arm and I let her. My body responds in a giggly way, feeling soft at her touch. "Phoebe," She starts. "Don't you feel our connection?" She whimpers. I look at her, side-eyed with my head tilted. I slowly shake my head in denial. "There's no connection between us, Catherine." I manage to stutter out, pulling my arm away from her.

Her face grows weaker as a wash of disappointment grows over her. "I just thought," She stops, searching for the right words. "I felt like we had some sort of connection." She whispers, disappointed. "I thought we could do this, together." She adds, looking up at me with her eyes glistening. She gives up, her shoulders sagging downwards. "Phoebe, I don't want to give up on this." She manages to stutter out. I furrow my eyebrows in confusion, tilting my head as I stare at her. This bitch was trying to kill me.

She holds her hands out and reaches for mine, gripping on them dangerously hard. "Phoebe, look at our leaders." She reasons, talking about Felix and Chase. "Just look at them now. They were never born for this." She explains to me, shaking my arms and looking at me hopefully. "We were born for this." She tells me. I take in her reasons, looking at her sincerely while trying to seep into Chase's mind. 'Chase, wake up!' I practically scream.

"We can overtake this together! We weren't born for second place. We deserve so much more." She pleads. I shake my head and smile warmly. "Catherine, you're right. You are worth so much more than this. But fighting isn't the answer." I fight back. "Phoebe!" Nick yells from behind the rocks, alerting both Catherine and I and sending our attention towards the rocks. "Phoebe, are you still there?" He calls out but I ignore him, turning my attention back to Catherine.

Catherine seems shocked that I didn't call back for him so she continues to listen to me. "We can talk this out, Catherine. We can do something without having to kill so many innocent people." I reason with her but she shakes her head. Sighing, she looks down. "Phoebe, that just isn't how I want this to go." She cries, holding onto my wrists tighter. For a brief moment, I feel like I can help her. I want to help her.

I open my mouth to say more but then close it again. There was another way. There were so many other ways. But I knew Catherine wouldn't win. I could still hear Nick blaring out my name. "Phoebe, Chase is up!" He triumphs, my attention going back to him. I want to respond but I didn't want to give up on Catherine. "Okay, I'm still here. Just stay there and let Chase rest" I choke out, manoeuvring a way for me to have more time to talk things out with Catherine. When I turned back to her, she'd let go of my hands and walked a few steps back, recognising the space between us. She wipes away her tears and her face goes hard.

"Phoebe, I'm so sorry." She whispers. I shake my head but she continues. "Phoebe, there isn't another way." She tells me, a long, sharp stake seeps from her hand and she holds it close to her. "And there isn't room for both of us." She grits out.

It all happened in slow motion. The stake, carved sharply at the very end, shooting mid-air and aiming straight for me. My scream gets stuck in my throat and I shut my eyes tightly. "Phoebe!" A male voice screams out but I'd shut him out. Clenching my fists, my eyes shut tighter, bracing myself for the pain that would get shot right through my centre in a few seconds. But it never came.

I peak my eyes open, confused. But as soon as I did, I wished I hadn't. There, right in front of me, Lupus stood. His dirty, crumpled white shirt, slowly staining in a dark red color. Lupus, standing in front of me with his hands held out, blocking me from Catherine. Lupus, standing in front of me with the long, sharp stake poking right through his chest. I gasp and let out a cry, frozen to my spot. Lupus's messy, raven hair laid over his head and covered his eyes but I could still see the tears forming in them. He smiles warmly and murmurs, "My Princess." As he falls to the ground.

Behind me, the rocks explode and send Catherine flying to the floor. Chase and Nick rush over to her as Felix appears from the end of the dark tunnel, pouncing on Catherine. I let out a long, agonising cry as I rush over to Lupus and crouch down beside him.

The sound of the three boys yelling behind me fills my ears but I block them out. Everything disappears. Only Lupus and I stay.

Lupus's eyes start to wander as he fights to keep them open. His breathing hitches and they grow uneven, pitching his breath as he fights for air. My hands grip his sides as my vision starts to clog with tears. My hands then cup his face, making him face me. I then rip the skirt of my dress off, tying it up and applying it to his wound. He winces at the touch of my cloth but I proceed. I pressed on it slightly and covered the entire wound to try stop the bleeding. But the blood just seeped through and stained every single part of me. My hands find his and I intwine our fingers together as I continue to cry. "Please Lupus, don't go." I choke.

Lupus's head tilts ever so slightly as he catches my eye. He uses his strength to tug his lips up, smiling warmly at me. "Don't cry, my princess." He murmurs out, only causing me to sob harder. I hold his hand tighter and force my lips up into a smile. "Lupus-" I start but then shut my lips.

He was going to die. He used all his energy to bring his hand up to my face.

His right hand covering the entire left side of my cheek. His thumb traces over my cheek as he rubs it softly. "I love you, Phoebe." He whispers. My hand trails up and hovers over his that cupped my cheek. His head then started to tilt back upwards, his eyes staring straight up to the ceiling. And within one last second, he let out a long breath before his chest stopped moving.

His hand felt heavy as his strength had gone and I let out a scream. I let go of his hand and let it lay beside him. Leaning down, I pressed my lips against his forehead. His skin was still soft and silky as my hand cupped his cheek. "It's going to be okay," I manage to stutter out. "We're going to be okay." I let my forehead rest against his as I close my eyes. My hand then found their way to his eyes as I slowly let his eyelids close.

I didn't care about the fighting going on behind me. I didn't care about the blood that would stain my clothes. I only cared about Lupus. My lip trembled as I tried to keep a warm smile on my face. Bringing him up, I held him close to me. My chin pressed against his shoulder as I hugged him tightly, not daring to let go.

Kissing his forehead once again, I whispered, "I love you too, Lupus."