A bloodied hand clasped my own urgently, the slick, warm liquid staining my palm. “Evelyn, you have to go,” the boy beneath me gasped, his eyes glazing over in pain. He attempted a comforting smile, but it only came out as a grimace. He gritted his teeth. “I’ll be okay. But if they catch you, they’ll-”

“I know, but….” I sat beside him on the dew-soaked grass, my trembling hands putting pressure on his wound. A wound that I had caused. One that he and I both knew would kill him. If a healer had been present, he might have been saved, but there were none on the scene. I doubted the Order would bring one along; all their manpower would go into securing that the Holders of the Cursed Eyes would finally be vanquished.

The boy coughed up blood, splattering the rags he had been forced to wear upon his capture. His wrists and ankles were bruised from chains, and if you lifted his shirt, you’d be greeted by several deep cuts lining his back. Maybe his death would finally put him at ease. It’d be better than dying alone in that cold cell he was held in.

Yet, I couldn’t allow that to happen. He was much too important to me, the only glimmer of light in this endless darkness that had consumed me. I regretted ever joining these witches, accepting their offer, leaving my poor older sister behind, wondering if I were alive or had met my demise. I didn’t deserve the happiness he gave me, but it was something I absolutely immersed myself in. If only I hadn’t been so reckless in my killings, he’d be left unscathed, and we could run away together. We could’ve settled back in Elkkehart, moved back in with my sister, and could’ve led everyday lives. But here he was, dying in a rural field. And it was all thanks to me.

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He shoved my hands away. The blood flowed steadily from the wound in his abdomen. “Go. I mean it. Leave me.” He gave me a long, serious look, his scarlet eyes determined despite all the agony he must've been in. “Go see the world for me, okay? Go help people. Be the person you were always meant to be, the person I know you are.”

I held his gaze, my eyes stinging with tears. I nodded solemnly and stood, my thin white dress drenched. I walked forward some paces until I made it to the top of a hill, and I looked out over the horizon. The sunset was beautiful - but why? Why did those gorgeous orange, pink, and purple hues have to be present on this day? On the day when a significant life had been lost? I silently cursed Soless for letting this happen. It was like the god was laughing at the death of my friend.

As if the god himself had heard me, clouds blocked the sunlight, and a steady drizzle rained upon Aestratha. I felt relief; the god had heard me. He felt my pain.

I prayed thanks to him. I thanked him for allowing me to meet the dying boy, for allowing me to feel happy for the first time in years, and for allowing me to bid him farewell.

I turned around to look at him for one last time. He was lying on the grass, unmoving. Tears rolled down my cheeks; I understood that he was gone now. The Great Above would watch over him now.

Goodbye, my friend. Wait for me up there, okay?