16th Dawn

She continued to float toward me, stopping only when she was mere feet away. She said to me, "I'll go straight to the point—did you kill Aloka?"

I paused, and with a slow, deliberate response, I replied, "Y...yes, I did. Who are you—"

Before I could finish my sentence, she slammed her fist into my face, and the rage on her face was unmistakable. "I have been asked to bring you alive, but I've made up my mind to kill you," she spat, her voice full of fury.

With a snap of her fingers, I felt an invisible blade slice through my body. My flesh was torn as though by a thousand cuts, and her voice echoed, "This is just the beginning." She gestured as if throwing a fist, and instinctively, my survival instincts screamed at me. I leapt to the side, narrowly avoiding the explosion that followed where I had just been. I gasped, struggling to regain my composure.

"What do you want with me?" I asked, trying to steady myself.

"I want you to die," she answered coldly. "It's as simple as that."

With another hand gesture, she commanded, "Rip him to shreds." I flapped my wings, flying erratically to avoid the attacks, but I couldn't see the direction from which they were coming.

As I darted through the air, I saw her squeeze her hand into a circle, and suddenly, my body was torn apart once more by those invisible blades. Then, with a gesture, the air around me began to withdraw—like it was being siphoned out of me and into her hands. I watched in horror as she formed a massive sword from the very air itself and hurled it toward me.

As it sped toward me, panic set in. I didn't know how to defend myself, but then, as if on instinct, something inside me prompted me to speak. "Der Schatten."

A shield of shadow formed in front of my hand, blocking the sword just in time.

I stood up, facing her, but I could see the shock in her eyes. She gasped, her expression filled with sorrow. "Killing him wasn't enough," she whispered, her voice cracking. "You also took his abomination essence."

Her eyes welled with tears as she spoke again, a mournful wail escaping her lips. "Aloka, my beloved... I will avenge you. I will tear his skin into pieces and present them to your grave."

It was then that I realized—Aloka and this unstable woman were lovers, and I had killed him.

I felt a pang of guilt, the weight of my actions pressing down on me. My will to fight began to wane as I saw her driven by grief and revenge. Her reason for killing me was personal, and I couldn't ignore the guilt that washed over me.

She unleashed another wave of wind blades, and I conjured another shield made of shadow, using it to protect myself. "I'm sorry about Aloka," I said, my voice sincere. "I understand that this doesn't justify what I did, but he killed my loved one too—"

Before I could finish, she cut me off, her voice laced with bitterness. "Aloka had orders to kill Hildegarde. It was not his fault."

I was taken aback. "What does Hildegarde have to do with this?"

"Don't play dumb," she spat, her eyes burning with anger.

Before I could react, she moved with terrifying speed, flying toward me and attempting to slice my head off with an invisible sword. I conjured a shadow sword and blocked her attack, but the force of her strike sent me stumbling back.

"You not only murdered Aloka," she snarled, "but you're also defiling his power, using it in such a pathetic way."

She began chanting, "The wind is my guide and my protection," and suddenly, I felt the air leave my lungs. I was suffocating, gasping for breath as the wind around me grew more oppressive. Looking up, I saw countless blades of wind forming above me.

"FALL!" she shouted, and the blades descended toward me like a deadly storm.

Suddenly, a loud scream pierced the air, and I looked to see Felidae screaming. My opponent flew back with great force, shrieking and gasping for air. I rushed to cover Felidae's mouth, but before I could, my fingers were torn to shreds by her super-sonic scream.

"Felidae, stop! She's almost dead!" I shouted desperately.

Felidae stopped screaming, and my opponent, enraged, launched herself toward her. Without thinking, I conjured a bow and arrow and shot it in her direction. The arrow struck her, sending her flying backward. She glared at me, her voice trembling with fury.

"How dare you... how dare...y...you..." she stammered, before collapsing unconscious.

I quickly tied her up, hoping to extract some information from her once she regained consciousness. When she woke, I said, "Finally awake?"

She looked at me with hollow eyes, silence settling between us before she spoke in a soft, sorrowful voice. "My name is Mist."

I was about to ask why she was telling me this, but before I could finish, she muttered something in a distorted language. Then, with a resigned tone, she continued, "There's no reason for me to live anymore. I am finally coming to join you, Aloka."

Before I could react, her skin began to puff up, and in an instant, she exploded. The blood splashed across my face, some of it seeping into my mouth. I managed to cover Felidae just in time, but the horror of what had just happened lingered in the air.