Suzie opened her eyes just in time to blearily watch Hiro’s eyelids flutter closed. She tried to move to catch him as he toppled over but a lance of pain from her abdomen kept her firmly rooted in place. At least he was kneeling and didn’t have far to fall and his head landed on a pillow of soft grass.

She shifted a bit, dry grass and dirt irritating her skin... Ok so maybe it wasn’t such a soft pillow to land on. To take care of Hiro she had to move. She pressed a hand to the source of her pain, feeling warm, wet blood between her fingers. Why was she bleeding...? Oh right, Kyna stabbed her. Kyna!

Suzie sat up suddenly, grunting from the pain in her stomach, the pain that was definitely not as bad as it should be, and looked around wildly but the only blonde head she saw was Alphonse’s as he crouched over Hiro, checking his pulse.

Suzie opened her mouth to ask what exactly happened but before she could get a word out, Kelsi threw her arms around her neck, “Suzie!! I was so worried.” Kelsi fully buried her face in Suzie’s shoulder, clinging tightly, “please don’t die!”

Suzie forced the tension out of her shoulders and put her not bloody hand on Kelsi’s back, “I’m not going to die.... But where’s Kyna? What happened to Hiro?”

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Alphonse hooked his arms under Hiro’s shoulders and knees, standing and lifting Hiro up in one smooth and easy motion, “he just used up what little mana he had replenished, healing you.” For a brief moment, Alphonse glared at her like he wanted her dead but then she blinked and his expression was back to being one of exasperation and apathy. With Hiro in his arms, Alphonse turned and walked back towards Eli’s home. Kelsi shuffled back so she was no longer in Suzie’s lap and snaked her arm under Suzie’s arms, helping her up. Leaning on her heavily, Suzie asked once more, “and Kyna?”

Suzie could feel Kelsi’s shrug against her side, “must have run off when I went to get help.”

Not feeling particularly reassured, Suzie looked around, chewing her bottom lip, but all she saw were villagers returning to their daily activities, acting as if they hadn’t been watching.

*

Hiro did not wake up before nightfall, leaving Alphonse and a partially healed Suzie to fend for themselves. Kelsi nervously watched them step out to fight from her seat at the foot of Hiro’s bed. For a few moments it was utterly silent. Through the window Kelsi watched as many lanterns, some magical, most not, flickered against the Darkness.

Then, rather suddenly, they all went out. There were a few seconds where all Kelsi could hear was her own heartbeat growing steadily faster and louder. Then there was screaming.