Ah, I was making a fool of myself.

“Got me good…” I groaned, holding my side. I had speared right through that thing like it had been paper. Whatever this black stuff actually was, it was worth its weight in gold.

I felt like I was swimming in a dark lake, and had lost my way. Flashes of my old life appeared right in front of my eyes, to then disappear. A couple of smiling face. My other parents. I think.

Another flash, coming closer.

And then I woke up and the first thing I saw was Mom’s face.

I had… forgotten about that…

I kept walking. Hey, at least I had yet to find more of those white things.

Chalkers. Yes.

Should have called them something more menacing because fuck, they could bite.

My shoulder knew about that.

It did not matter. I swayed and took another step. Bùrian was a small city. A town. Whatever.

“I want to write that book, you know? I want you to read it. I want Mom to tell me I did a good job,” I panted. Just a couple more turns.

I was almost at the square. She had to still be alive.

She had to.

“Hey, up there,” I groaned looking at the sky. No Sun, but that silver planetary ring shone from reflected like, didn’t it? I knew so little about this world.

Maybe I should write fucking Wikipedia and not a useless flower compendium.

Let’s just assume it did, because by then I was at the end of my rope.

“Hey, you. Goddess-whatever… don’t let her die on me, alright? I care… I care about her.”

I stumbled right, and then walked down the road, amidst the bones and the fallen braziers and the curtains of flames coming up to lick at the night. It smelled like blood and fear and lemons.

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I might not like lemons that much anymore.

The square. Yes.

A pile of corpses, in a ring, and there…

What was that?

It looked like a ghostly woman, but her skin and flesh rippled like a sea anemone. Something shone in the middle of her chest.

And Kishirra – Kishirra was – alive!

Ah, thank God! Whatever God, in this or any other world.

She was messed up, but alive.

And the other woman was so close.

Whatever it was – not good. I stumbled forward. More Chalkers, but they ignored me, all of them sitting patiently like whipped dogs.

Then the woman leaned forward, and crouched next to her, and fucking set her fingers against her lips?

What the-

I whipped my arm out and pointed at that fucker.

“Hey! You!”

She turned to look at me. Kishirra did as well, a shocked look on her face.

“Yeah, you! Keep your fucking hands off my Elf GF!”

And then I threw the poleaxe at her.

It arched through the empty air and it missed her by a good three feet.

It clattered on the ground, useless.

The Chalkers all turned to look at me, hunger now lit in their beady eyes.

Throwing your sword always works! It was supposed to work!

“Lugana Delebasse, you senseless nincompoop!” Kishirra shouted.

I was inclined to agree.

Not my best moment.

The closest Chalker growled and lunged at me.

Maybe my last.

I turned to look at Kishirra.

She wasn’t there anymore.

Once more, something very fast and very angry hit the Chalker. It pulverized its torso into a burst of powder and broken innards – it fell on its back with a gargled whimper and it did not move anymore.

“Lugana.” Kishirra held me with her left arm. Her right one was bent at a weird angle. She was missing two fingers from that hand she had hit the Chalker with. “Why are you here? You should have been with your family. I gave you this chance… why did you not take it?”

“I would not leave you to die alone.”

“I am supposed to die. It is in my blood, you daft girl, it is in my stars! It is what I have been bred for!”

“Well,” I spurted. Was this out first fight? Couldn’t we argue over curtains colour or some other stupid topic all couples did? I wasn’t good with this life-or-death stuff. I was a nerd girl with weak arms, a terrible aim and a big crush. My greatest aspiration was to write a book about flowers. So give me a break, please – I had something good in my lives for once, and I wasn’t going to let it go. “I was supposed to die of anxiety in my room, and guess what.”

The Chalkers came even closer. Kishirra held up her good hand.

“Stand back. You would not harm this body any further, would you?” She looked at my shoulder. “You are bleeding badly. How? Why did you not flee?”

“You were good to me.”

It was getting dark.

Where was autopilot-Lugana? Right when I needed her…

My body felt heavy.

And kind of dull.

Blood loss. I had read something about it once.

“I was selfish,” she choked.

“Yes,” I replied. How many times were we supposed to have this conversation? My girlfriend was so stubborn. “But. You were there.”

I raised a hand against her cheek.

It was a bit wet.

And I was falling.