IV.

Madoka drew away from Elise's embrace, realizing a sharp pain nicked her hand. She was bleeding. She must have grabbed the table at the wrong angle and sliced it. Elise wiped her tears away and as soon as she noticed Madoka's hand was bleeding she panicked.

"How did that happen?" Elise looked for something to wrap it up. "A healer's on the way. You're okay, right?"

"I'm fine," Madoka whispered. It was not even a deep scratch. Elise frowned and looked at the table. She noticed the sliver of wood protruding from her hand and deduced it must have been that. Elise reached for Madoka's hand but instinctively she pulled it away.

"Nope," Elise said, pulling Madoka's hand back to her lap. "Your hand belongs to me now."

Madoka was not in the mood to fight her off so the two of them waited for the healer to show. Elise plucked the sliver out and the sting barely affected Madoka.

"I am hearing..." Madoka trailed off. "Dark thoughts unlike any animal I've come across. Everytime I see your brother the thoughts grow darker."

"Oh, with that strange ability of yours?" Elise asked. She lowered her voice to a whisper. "I see dark mana all around this place. But you still glow, Madoka. That brother of mine and those particles must be connected somehow."

"Dark mana?" Madoka pondered.

"Like, it's creepy," Elise said looking up at the ceiling and the corners. Despite the ordeal, Madoka noticed how dirty and neglected they were. Ugh, she thought and considered cleaning this place would be in order the next chance she gets. "Normally it's just speckles of light but this Palace just contains... Anyways. We're in this together, so do as I say, okay?"

"Yes, Your Highness," Madoka nodded. Elise was about to protest but they were interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Excuse me, Your Highness," Squash-face's armored hand tapped the door with heavy raps. "I've brought my father, er the healer."

"Come in! Come in!"

The door fully opened as Jacob and the healer entered, bowing. Elise recognized the healer although Madoka did not. The crest on his green robe matched that of Elise's Brother's army.

"You...!" Elise said, her voice shaking with suspicion. "Whatever, heal my servant's wound!"

"Please," Madoka protested. "You don't have to do this for me."

"Father, go ahead," Squash-face persisted, letting the healer get closer. The healer chuckled.

"It's been some time since I last saw you, dear," he said, pulling out a strange wooden talisman. Madoka remembered who he was. He healed her palm. "Let me take care of this wound."

"It's just a little scratch," Madoka started again but Elise looked at her assuredly. The look in her eye told Madoka that she wanted to witness this healer's magic and take notes. "What is that?"

"Oh? This is an object blessed by the Gods," the Healer began humming. Madoka realized that he was not humming, but the talisman was.

"There are mana strands in all things. Helical strings and Substance shifts in all living beings. These verdant strands, well, they make you feel a little less lonely, wouldn't you think?" He continued, then breathed in and out. A hint of green spiral filaments seemingly delicate as spiderwebs exited his mouth as breath. And like the spider weaves its web to another surface, the strands untangle and connect to the talisman's own Substance strings. Madoka realized she could only see the strands if someone activated them.

She shuddered at the thought of Elise being able to see them all the time. Elise was observing the healer's channeling before scribbling things inside her book.

Little green connections spread their threads to Madoka's cut skin. Those words he spoke were too big for her head. She watched the Substance magic twirl for a moment and then weave her small cut together.

"You didn't have to do that for me," Madoka told him. Pain is nothing to her. Though the magic runs through her like an invisible spear resulting in a shiver.

The old healer chuckled and pocketed his odd talisman.

"Then I did it for me," he replied and wiped the blood off with a cloth.

"Thank you, sir," Madoka crossed her arms and looked away. Squash-face jumped up and bowed to him.

"Thank you, Father," he said. "For helping my friend out."

Friend? Madoka almost blurted out, but Elise shooed them out.

"Yes, yes, thank you very much," Elise scoffed. "Now go back to whatever you were doing."

The healer bowed and took his leave. Squash-face waited outside and guarded the room.

"What an annoying NPC," Elise sighed.

"N...Piece?" Madoka stumbled over the word. Elise shrugged then waved her off.

"That mage's words on Substance magic mostly falls in line with those books I read at the Estate," Elise commented. "Still doesn't make it any less weird."

"Weird?" Madoka asked. Elise pulled out the book flipped to a page. The depiction of the Six Armed Goddess was revealed to be on it.

"Supposedly, this thing is in control of all life," Elise said. "A goddess of life and fields. Cliché, right?"

"She is a kind goddess," Madoka said. Elise looked at her blankly. Madoka asked a question. "Can you see those mana strands he made?"

"I see them when he channels into that talisman," Elise noted. "But I don't see those strings anywhere. I see... more like spheres of different colored lights. And..."

"I see those dark splotches all around," She stopped and looked at the shadows. Her expression changed. "I think someone is tampering with them."

Madoka could only think of Elise's brother.

"Speaking of the Estate," Elise said. "I thought we could retreat out of here to the north, we'd have a shot to retrieve the important things. But we don't! What a shame."

"Why is it even there?" Madoka wondered aloud. Was it really for locking away people?

"The Estate?" Elise asked. Madoka nodded. "It was situated there to ward off invaders from gaining a foothold in the weakest point of this nation. However, since a big mountain range blocks most of the northern continent beyond this one, we no longer use it. Currently, the unknown lands beyond the northern mountain range is getting ravaged by some kind of Celestial being. Conveniently, that same being made those mountains. Wicked, right?"

"Huh," Madoka shrugged.

"I thought that was a cool thing to know about," Elise said. "Stops invaders from coming from the north. That means the Estate was pretty much abandoned by its Lord."

"Invaders?"

"Our three neighbors," Elise said after a pause. "The countries to our east, west and southeast are not particularly friendly with us. Remember, violence and magic rule this world. At least that's what these old, out-of-touch moronic nobles would say."

Elise sighed. Madoka's head swam. She realized she would not understand any of the politics. None of it made sense to her as a commoner. Elise could tell the confusion was on her face.

"Look at it this way," Elise said, flipping to a map in her book. Madoka simply thought she had too much time on her hands. "They want our stuff. The weak nobles here don't seem to know and only care about my brother's promise of change, but they plan to use him for their own goals. Meanwhile the other countries ransack our villages and secure labyrinth entrances. They have things in them that aren't found on the surface of this world."

"So they want our stuff?" Madoka said the question as if it was a statement. She does not have stuff. She was a slave. The concept seemed simple enough. "What about the darkness here?"

"That..." Elise paled. "I don't know anything about. Frankly, I don't want to get to the bottom of it. I still..."

She trails off.

"Do you still have those visions?"

Elise slowly nodded. Madoka was taken aback at the revelation. Just how much has she shouldered without telling her servant?

"It's... not good to keep that from me, Elise," Madoka said.

"It's not new ones," Elise said. "Just the same nightmare every once in a while. A lucid dream of a future closing in on us like... I don't really have a comparison now."

Madoka did not know if she should feel relieved or worse about that. Night was falling rapidly into a cold atmosphere. Fall did that here - Madoka has forgotten all about that.

"D-Don't you worry about it!" Elise said shyly. "My body doesn't hurt anymore after I have them."

"That just makes me worry more!" Madoka snapped. Elise shrunk. A door knocked.

"Come in," Elise said.

It was Jacob.

"Your Highness, I am here to escort you to your chambers," Squash-face said. He glanced at the map. "Whoa! That's a pretty good map!"

Elise covered it instinctively.

"It's n-none of your business!"

"I know, I know," he waved her off. But he pointed at the letters and read them. "That's Esmeralda! And that's Tabruula!"

"You can read?!" Both Elise and Madoka exclaimed. Madoka was surprised and somewhat jealous since she herself could not. Squash-face looked confused but stood proudly.

"Of course I can, Your Highness and Madoka," he said. "My Father taught me."

"Your father, huh?" Elise mused. She looked as if she resented him for a moment. She closed her book. "Very well, potato. Take me away."

Later that night alone in her room, Madoka began to hear those dark thoughts again.

V.

"What would you like to do if you, no, we made it out of here?" Elise asked. Madoka decided it was best to not worry her princess by not reporting she heard the voices last night.

The two remained in the study for the following days. She only brought a lot of food and tea up to the princess. Otherwise, she cleaned the nooks and crannies of the room. Right now, she was balancing on a wooden stool reaching for a tough spot above the shelves. She could do it without thinking, thanks to her speed training atop the jagged rocks Leopride conjured for her ages ago.

She missed those days. The scar on her palm comforted her during these nights.

"I would like us to," Madoka paused in thought about it. Such an option did not occur to her. So she asked the question back to her. "What would you like us to do?"

"I would very much still like to continue the Elise and Madoka adventures."

"I-I," Madoka stammered. She did not want to do such things in labyrinths or altars.

"If only I were more powerful in magic, Madoka," Elise sighed. "My magic core has made some improvement since that god spoke to me. Still, ah, working on the kinks."

"That god, right," Madoka still felt the chill from its voice the first time she heard it. She hopped off the stool and landed gracefully. "Has it spoken to you or anything since?"

"No," Elise murmured. "I don't really know why, but I can't fathom it being a god. I know, I know. It's just like my brain and beliefs don't match. How are you so religious, Madoka?"

"The kind gods have..." Madoka was about to say they allowed her to meet Elise but she stayed silent. "I've been raised here under their peaceful eyes. How could I not believe in them?"

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

"They made you a slave," Elise snapped. Then she went back to being gloomy. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

"I wish to serve you," Madoka simply said. She was a simple maid, after all. The kind gods prepared this life for her. Although the doubts crept in her mind, she still chose to believe that god was really there in those ruins. Elise cleared her throat and switched subjects.

"I wish that god could help me out again. But it didn't, so, I've tried everything I could think of to cultivate mana," Elise said, holding up her hands and made a circle with her fingers. A small translucent bubble floated from the inner shape of the circle and popped. "And all I can do is some small wind and water tricks. I don't think it's the same thing as all those light novels I read... tch!"

"Those Wind swords were impressive," Madoka offered. Elise sighed and wiped the water off her hands on Madoka's cloth.

"Wind swords? That makes them sound cool. They're not enough," Elise looked back to her book. "Perhaps later, I'll figure it out."

"I wish the best for you," Madoka bowed. She prayed that Elise would succeed. The room was spotless. She still felt that the dark mana the princess spoke of still lingered but at least it was clean.

"Then I can be strong enough to support you on adventures. Wherever we go," the princess said with a serious tone. "They're going to be having another go at my curse soon, Madoka."

Madoka's own feelings tensed at the meaning beneath her words. They were going to try their best to get rid of her.

"And I," Elise wiped her eyes. She was crying! Madoka immediately rushed to her and comforted her as she always did. "I don't have anything. No plans. I-I'm... scared!"

"I believe in you," Madoka soothed her. The princess buried her face in the maid's shoulder. "We've come this far."

The princess focused her eyes after Madoka wiped the tears off her face. "I will try my best to formulate a plan," the princess said, showing the radiant ring of magic. Madoka realized it was flowing around her heart. Has it always done that before? "I know I am making progress with this. I just am afraid it's not enough and that I will fail you."

"I trust you," Madoka said softly, but with all her heart. She could not leave the princess after their time in the North Estate.

"I lov- I trust you, Madoka. More than you know. Your strength, I...." the princess sobbed. Madoka simply pat her head. "I'll do anything to make this pass."

"Now, now," Madoka soothed her princess, like the old days. "We must move forward for tomorrow."

"For all our tomorrows," Elise pulled away from Madoka. "Go for now. I must... I have to figure this out. They will suspect you if you are here with me."

"But Your Highness," Madoka protested. A simple look was all she needed. Madoka bowed and departed from the room quietly. She trusted her friend.

Days later, Madoka saw the princess less. She stayed sequestered in her study, refusing to let anyone in. Madoka felt lost. She was unable to do anything and she was requested by the Head Maid again. The voices were getting worse without Elise and the only thing that calmed her down were her servant duties.

Madoka noticed more nobles came and went with their fancy clothes. Before she hid away, Elise said they were smart and powerful men apart of a thing called a noble hegemony. They were aiming to break the ailing king's reign. Madoka did not understand as usual, but realized that ailing meant the king was growing weaker. She wondered if that's how her princess's prophecies predicted.

Madoka worked until she was exhausted and found herself in bed late.

Death.

Red.

String.

Roots.

Death.

Madoka had enough of these stupid voices. She was tired of her restless nights and beating her head against a sweaty pillow. The wind knocked against the tiny window in her servant's quarters next to the princess. Suddenly, an even louder knock struck the window. Madoka jerked up, wide awake as the voices faded away. The night was cool and calm with moonbeams on clear display in the sky. Madoka, however, was the opposite.

She tore her dress up and had claw marks on her skin from clutching herself and her head. L-Let this endless night pass, Madoka struggled as she sat helplessly on her bed. She could not even pray or utter noise out her mouth. She motioned to scream, but silently flailed and wailed in her anguish.

Another knock. This time, Madoka stopped her tantrums and stared at its source. A glowing, white bird sat next to the window looking directly at her. What was this bird? Madoka thought. It looked like a ghost with a disturbingly human face with a beak instead of a nose. Madoka shook her head. Was this her sinking into the depths of madness from sleep deprivation?

The bird remained. It flapped its odd feathers as it sat. Strange, flesh like pink tentacles revealed themselves to be writhing beneath the folds of its wings. Madoka concluded she was going insane and decided the bird was enough. Still it sat there at the corner of her eyes.

Its thoughts were quiet, but so were Madoka's. Even the whispers vanished entirely. It truly made her feel at peace, despite its oddly grotesque appearance. Madoka closed her eyes in a blink at the bird and silently thanked it for the temporary reprieve. The bird kept its gaze with its mystical glow and had Madoka's attention spellbound. The illuminated creature cocked its head suddenly.

DO NOT GO OUTSIDE.

A loud thought struck her but with more clarity and strength than those whispers. Commotion broke out in the princess's room. Elise! Madoka struggled to get out of her bed and instead tumbled to the carpet. The princess was screaming something about a lawyer as people were dragging her away. Madoka did not know what her words meant but she was being taken away from her.

"INNOCENT TIL PROVEN GUILTY," She thundered. "You stupid pigs didn't even read me my rights!"

More movement thumped outside as Madoka feebly crawled to the door. She could not get up. The shining bird out her window was watching the maid intently. She had to help her princess.

Tomorrow?

Tomorrow!

Tomorrow.

For tomorrow!

Don't go outside!

Madoka ignored it and reached for the handle. But it would not budge. After several attempts at twisting the door, her hand felt numb as exhaustion covered her vision. The princess's screams drew further than her ears could allow.

"Please," Madoka mouthed to the bird. Its thoughts remained quiet as it stared back at her. It tilted its head at her request. As Madoka slumped and slipped into her sleep against the door, the bird flew away out of her vision.

Madoka wept as she fell asleep.

VI.

Madoka opened her eyes and found herself lying on the floor. She sighed. Tomorrow did arrive and it was today. Sunlight soaked through the windows and blinded her for a moment. The night before was not a dream. It weighed heavily on her bones. Madoka placed the thought of the bird as a mere nightmare. It was chilly in her room but she remained sweating and engulfed in nervousness.

Outside her window where the bird rested at, however, was the clear view of a pillar of light piercing the sun. Madoka recalled it flying directly up in the night sky. That trail of light piercing the heavens must be left by the ominous bird. Was it a warning sent by the kind gods?

Madoka cursed herself for sleeping later than she should. She quickly got up and avoided looking at the princess's chambers. Madoka assimilated with the other maids while suppressing an uneasy feeling forming in her gut. She would sleep with the other maids in the shared quarters from now on. Those soldiers were going to come for her and the Palace seemed to be much more oppressive than lately. She still believed Elise will survive this ordeal, although she could not erase the princess's screams from last night out of her head.

As she did her duties, she could not help but feel nervous at every sound. Madoka's neck felt strained from looking over her shoulder. She was in a hallway, expecting signs of the whispers's return or anything ominous but nothing happened. Before she closed the curtains on a window, she noticed the pillar of light still remained from across the view.

Suddenly heavy boots stomped near her and startled her. Some of the guards looked at Madoka and laughed at her reaction before saluting the patroling soldiers but they left her alone. The other servants seemed as carefree as they were before. How could they act normal in times like this? In a way, she envied their ignorance. On the other hand, she could not help but feel like she was truly crazy.

She swore the soldiers would immediately take her away but they simply walked on by as she attempted to dust things. By all accounts, she was just another invisible slave serving in the Palace. At least that is what she hoped. Madoka was not going to take any chances so she made herself scarce. She hoped no one would notice her shirking her duties. A pit in her neck still formed from the guilt of doing so. Madoka ignored it and rounded the corner directly into a soldier's chest.

"Please! Don't take me away!" Madoka begged as she cowered.

"Madoka?"

A friendly voice came above her. It was Squash-face's voice.

"Squ- Jacob?" Madoka looked up at him. She felt a wave of relief at the sight of his face and she never thought she would feel that way.

He looked at her with a worried face.

"Madoka?" He asked again. Madoka cleared her throat and recovered by briskly wiping her skrit off. "Why are you cowering like that?"

"A-Apologies, sir. You startled me," Madoka did not trust him and tried to walk away but Jacob laughed.

"There's no way someone like me can startle you like that," he joked but got serious. "Hey, so I heard some crazy news."

"It's the princess, right?" Madoka tried to play ignorance of Elise's arrest, hoping the quivering in her voice did not show. Squash-face leaned in closer.

"Yeah, they got her in the middle of the night," he said. "How mad is that? Roughed her up something fierce."

Madoka's heart sank.

"Your breath stinks," Madoka said to him because he was too close. The soldier backed off and bowed.

"Whoops, sorry," he said. "It's just that, I figured you would be more worried. I can't help but feel like this Palace has gone backwards lately. Kind gods seal my lips, but the princess seemed harmless if not a little eccentric. Why did they arrest her?"

Madoka's face said it all to him the moment he said that.

"Can you take me to her," Madoka asked him then she withdrew. It was foolish to ask such things. "Nevermind, forget I said anything."

"I could try, I guess," Jacob shrugged. "She is kinda in a bad state, so I don't want to make you more uncomfortable. The Prince's soldiers have pretty much taken my patrol duties away so I have nothing better to do."

"Take me to her," Madoka insisted quickly. Jacob raised his hands defensively.

"Hai, hai," he said. "No need to worry about you, I suppose. Are we skipping our duties today?"

Madoka gulped but Jacob laughed.

"I'm just messing with you," Squash-face seemed ignorant of what was to come and Madoka could not blame him. He looked around the corner and back to her.

"Yeah, coast is clear," he shrugged. "Come with me."

"Wait," Madoka noticed a cart with a tray on it nearby. The maid inside the room nearby was distracted, so Madoka took it.

"Smart and diabolical," Jacob laughed. "Good thinking."

Madoka could not stop her heart from pounding as he guided her through the Palace. She swore the tray on the cart would rattle off the surface from her nervous shaking. No one seemed to question a soldier and a servant following him as they passed by. Elise was right, Madoka thought as she looked around the Palace's lower commons. This place truly had many useless rooms. It was all a mere distraction from the storm in her mind. They found themselves at the edge of the Palace's walls and the exit which led to the dungeons.

They took her here?

"Yeah," Squash-face could read the disbelief on her own face. "Told you the dungeons were creepy. This one only has her. We gotta hurry though. They might get on our backsides if they catch us being lazy."

They quickly moved to the prisoner quarters that held Elise captive. Jacob stopped at the door. The guards spoke with him and he fumbled an excuse to pass by. It seemed like they did not care either way that the two were there. She bowed to them with her cart and they waved her off. Madoka assumed they were dozing off in this secluded area and had no reason to be suspicious of a simple maid.

"I-I'll keep a look out," he said. "You two probably got some secrets to share. Don't say I didn't warn you though, she looks like hell."

That alone made Madoka hurry to see her princess. The place was damp and gross. Something new burned in her heart as she moved along. She could not figure out what it possibly was though. Beyond the dilapidated open metal gate was her princess, chained to the wall. She was not moving.

"Elise!" Madoka rushed to the cell.

At the sound of her name, Elise slowly looked up at Madoka. Madoka fell to her knees at the cell door as she saw what became of her princess. Blood trickled down her cheek and through her torn dress from multiple coin-sized wounds, with her ragged chest rising and falling like a poorly patched sail in the wind. Her skin was purple-black to Madoka's horror. Madoka noticed she had a light ring of magic pulsing around her heart. Was it keeping her alive?

"Hi, Madoka," the princess said, weakly.

"H-How could they do this to you?" Madoka's words fell like her tears in a splattered mess. A chain clinked as the princess made a motion. Her cheek was bright red, glistening from blood from sustaining a beating.

"I'm sorry, Madoka," the princess whispered. "I made... miscalculations. They're moving quicker than I thought."

"Never mind that," Madoka cried. She checked the entrance to the dungeon and considered tearing the cell door apart to free Elise but the princess stopped her. As always, she knew Madoka's intentions.

"Don't," Elise said weakly. "This pain is nothing."

"How can you say that?" Madoka's sorrowful voice gutted the silent air.

"It's okay," Elise hushed her. "I now know what to do."

"You do?"

Elise lifted her bloody head at her maid. Madoka realized there was something familiar in the princess's eyes. It was something in common within Madoka, burning inside of her since she entered this terrible place.

"Can you trust me?" Elise asked Madoka quietly.

"Yes," Madoka simply said. She wished she could hold the princess in her arms. Madoka got up and wiped her tears off the best she could.

"Go now, let me rest," Elise said, hanging her head back down. The core around her heart faded. As Madoka turned away and exited with the cart she memorized the look in Elise's blue eyes. It was anger roiling inside of her soul. Madoka wished she could get back at those nobles but Elise was much smarter than she was, so Madoka would hold onto her faith in her princess.

"Not a pretty sight, eh?" Squash-face looked at her expression. Madoka shook her head. "Let's get out of here, yeah?"

They split ways when Madoka got to the main entrance. It was oddly quiet, so she made herself look busy while her heart felt like it was going to explode. The night fell and Madoka was nervous. The whispers had not bothered her since last night but the sight of Elise in that pitiful state scarred her mind. She never wanted to see her princess in pain again. She feared that was only the beginning as she made her way to the servant quarters.

The ornate lanterns of the Palace were the only things keeping her company as she walked. Madoka found that odd, since even at night the servants still had their duties. She was praying the princess's plans were successful when she heard footsteps that were not her own. There was someone following her. Kind gods, Madoka froze.

"You're not going to your own quarters?"

It was the Prince himself, standing behind Madoka. She seized up for a moment but turned and bowed.

"Y-Your Highness! Apologies I did not see you," she spoke in reverent Noble. The Prince regarded the maid for a moment. He had many features that resembled Elise's. He was truly her brother, but Madoka was worried the voices would strike her again. No, no, no! Madoka's head pounded but her face remained neutral as she kept up her act. "The Head Maid has called for me since Her Highness has been absent."

It was not a lie for the Head Maid did tell her that. Prince Fiara stood tall, broad shoulders and his mantle had a decorated version of his crest, and waved her off.

"You don't have to be nervous around me," he said, beckoning her to follow him. His voice was still soft, but Madoka could see right through his intentions and they terrified her. "Come."

Madoka could not help but feel like she was being dragged to her own death. What was that prophecy Elise had for Madoka again? Whatever it was, it was not good. The Prince was leading her towards somewhere she recognized, stopping at a doorway. It was a side entrance to the throne room. He turned to her.

"I know it's difficult to believe me," Prince Fiara spoke. Madoka's heart pounded as an ominous presence emanated from behind the door. The voices were creeping in her ears again like pervasive tentacles tickling her mind. Madoka could not hide the fear on her face at the anticipation on what will happen next. "But as much as you love the Princess, so do I as her Brother. We're not so different, you see?"

Death.

Roots.

Cut.

Red String.

Take.

"W-Why," Madoka struggled to speak up. An air of malevolence filled the room as she did like an oppressive odor. Her voice shook with anger and determination. "Why do the voices disagree with what you say?"

At the mention of the voices, Prince Fiara's face went pale. Then the whispers stopped immediately as he spoke. Was he controlling them with magic? Madoka choked on the air and realized she was holding her breath. It felt like invisible hands were wringing her neck like a wet towel.

"You can hear them, too?" He asked. Madoka started crying as the doubts in her wavered her convictions about him momentarily. Prince Fiara went to embrace the maid. She tried to back up, but as she looked down at her feet horror struck her. Black roots have formed around her legs. The Prince hugged her firmly. "Hush, faithful servant of my Sister. Hush..."

Pain unlike any she's ever experienced pierced through her whole body before Madoka knew what was happening. Prince Fiara withdrew his blade from her heart, erupting blood out of her. He deftly side stepped the mess as she hacked up more with her heart beating out of control. She could not scream as her body fell on its own to the ground. The prince's remorseless eyes standing over her were the last thing she saw before her vision faded.