Aurelie sat down on her bed with a sigh, then plopped down, utterly exhausted from both the walk to her room and the incrimination in Farn’s tone. The blame crushed her, but the guilt, the feeling that it was her fault that Mellana was dead, was far worse.

She shouldn’t have been distracted, she should have known better than to be alone with anyone, she should have…

But she was the weakest of the three of them, she was the youngest, she was the most unacquainted with this world’s customs. They should have realized being with her was dangerous, that Gradas Meir would come for her, that she shouldn’t be alone with them, or with anyone, for that matter. It wasn’t fair that she should always have to think of all that could go wrong, that she had to always have her guard up. They should have realized!

But this second argument was said in a weaker voice, drowned out by the guilt. She was the assassin, the planner, the one who was always aware. It wasn’t just a role, but her personality. It was her fault. She always knew better, should always be ten steps ahead. The only reason any of this had happened was because she had underestimated Gradas Meir, and the speed at which he could become an Elemental Apprentice. It had proved fatal.

The thoughts, the guilt, the blame, the grief, the indignation, all of it mixed and blended, miring her in a quicksand of despair and self-pity.

Sitting up, she closed her eyes and settled her body into her cultivation position. After all, cultivating was the only escape she had access to.

~~~~~~~

Cailysi, Planos, and Mrs. Dreslin stood over Gradas Meir’s body, studying it for the umpteenth time. The wounds were unlike anything they had ever seen before.

Aurelie hadn’t told anyone what exactly had happened. In fact, she hadn’t told anyone anything about Meir’s death. She claimed that she hadn’t done anything, and had fallen unconscious due to him choking her.

But they had all heard the gunshot. While Mrs. Dreslin had been confused, the others had immediately recognized it as the sound that that strange device had emitted, the one Aurelie had used to alert them to her presence on the battlefield. They had never known that it was a weapon, but it wasn’t hard to link an unknown sound to an unknown wound.

Aurelie was sticking to her story, though, and continually refused to confirm her involvement in Gradas’ death. And, despite the evidence, they were reluctant to believe that it was indeed her. There was no weapon that could cause so much damage, and Aurelie was a third stage Master, incapable of causing the damage to Gradas on her own.

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On the other hand, Aurelie was such a mystery that no one was quite sure what to expect from her. And they had heard one of her strange devices go off. So there was a slim possibility that it was her.

In fact, it being her was the only possibility.

Mrs. Dreslin was overjoyed at this fact. When Aurelie joined the Seven Heavens Academy, the school would gain another powerhouse! Cailysi and Planos celebrated with her, but on the inside, Cailysi was glum. Her position within the group was steadily dropping. She was beginning to feel less and less important, which was depressing most especially because she had come along for the sole purpose of scoffing at the weakness of the village children that they would be visiting. If she had known that this would happen, then she would’ve stayed at school.

Groaning and walking away from the Village Hall, Cailysi slipped into the forest and walked by herself for a little while. When she finally got tired of all the bugs attempting to bite her, sh turned and began to meander back, but before she could get far, a voice stopped her. She turned back, eyes wide.

~~~~~~~

She was standing in a sea of blood that rose up to her ankles.

There was an island, near her, with steps leading from the sea to the top of a hill, and she began to walk to it, though she had made no conscious decision to do so. The level of the blood rose, the floor sloping downwards. Intermittently, a flash of white shown through, a skull jeering at her with empty eyes and toothless smirk. Sometimes, an entire skeleton floated past. But she continued to walk.

The blood crept up to her knees, and she watched as it clung to her, as though it was trying to hold her back.

She slogged through it, creating small waves in the otherwise peaceful red sea.

She was neck-deep in blood when she finally reached the island. She touched the lowest step. It burned her, as though it were made of fire. Ignoring the pain, she hauled herself up and started to climb the stairs. Each stair was hotter than the last, searing her. She soundlessly continued upwards.

The top was a flower field. She glanced around, looking for someone.

“Hello.” Mellana’s voice came from next to her, and she watched as the recently deceased girl danced up to her. Mellana tilted her head to the side and smiled at her. She held her breath, knowing what came next.

As she expected, Mellana continued to tilt her head, tilting and tilting until…

Crack! The bones in Mellana’s neck made an echoing sound as they snapped. Mel’s smile turned gruesome, and she began to yell “This is your fault.”  in a hoarse voice. The island shuddered and began to crumble, and both of them fell into the viscous liquid beneath them. She plunged in deep, began to kick towards the surface, but then Mellana was there, holding her down. Then the skeletons came, latching onto her, immobilizing her.

And Aurelie drowned in the sea of blood.