Chapter 18: A Battlefield

It's dark and cold and wet. My head is throbbing. I try to raise my head, but I feel sick. I must have gotten hit harder than I thought. I blink, trying to refocus on my surroundings. A battle field. I remember a battle. A great foe. My brother... My brother! My world is still hazy, but I can see my brother now. My heart freezes. I pray my eyes betray me. I blink again. I only see them clearer - glistening blades protruding from my brother's back. I try to scream, I try to reach out to him, but I cannot move. My fingers twitch slightly, but fear smothers me into submission. Understand, my mind begs. Take in this scene and understand what is happening. The blades... they come from our foe. Our foe now lays crushed beneath my brother's knee, my brother's own blade penetrating that monster's heart. But it wasn't fast enough. It was an even exchange. And from the placement and depth of his wound, I can tell that my brother will soon follow our foe and leave this world. Leave me... I can hardly see anymore. Tears blur my vision. I hate this moment. I don't want to forget this moment. My brother, my hero, out of my reach. I force myself to focus. And then I see her. My fear mixes with awe and wonder. I have to be imagining her. My brother's departed wife. Her spirit, embracing him from behind. Welcoming him back to her. Suddenly, unexplained peace washes over me. I am still and no longer frozen. My brother is leaving me, but he is going home. He will be alright. I will be alright, because of him. Our people will be alright, because of him. But our world will be less bright without him. And so, I prop myself up as best I can and cry out my farewell to him. I doubt he can hear me clearly, but the smallest smile graces his lips, showing me that he can understand me. I struggle forward. When I finally make it to his side, he is in his wife's embrace.