Colbie fell to the ground, feeling Reed's hand on her shoulder. His hand was like a weight keeping her down, the grip painfully tight.
Ruby screamed as Alden pulled her into his chest with a tight hug, his own face paler than Reed was.
There, in front of all of them, stood Eugene with a sword through his chest.
Eugene gasped, trying to speak. All that came out was blood, pouring down his chin. He barely smiled until the pain overtook him. His knees shook until he landed in the mud on his hands and knees.
Kale withdrew the sword, cleaning it off on Eugene's robe. He grinned and snapped the arrow lodged in his shoulder, throwing it at the stunned group of Rune Wielders. "If you'll excuse me, I have a shrine to attend to. Enjoy your corpse of a leader," he said, walking off into the bog.
Colbie pushed Reed off and sloshed through the water. She slumped down, holding Eugene's body in her shaky hands. Muddy water seeped through her suit, making her feel numb at the foreign feeling.
By the time Reed got there, he was already gone. They didn't even get to say goodbye before he left them. Colbie bowed her head over his stomach as the others knelt down, bowing their own heads.
After a while, Reed rolled up his sleeves, tears dotting his face. "I can heal him," he croaked out. His hands shook and it looked like he barely could stand.
"No, you can't," Colbie said, putting a hand on his arm. "Reed please," Colbie whispered.
Reed shook his head, falling to his knees. He sobbed, pushing his hands into the mud. "I...I can heal...I can heal him--I swear!" he hiccupped. "Let me go!" he sobbed, despite no one holding onto him. "I can heal him!"
Alden and Ruby trudged over to Reed, staring at him before glancing to Eugene. Their faces were unreadable.
Ruby knelt next to Reed, rubbing his shoulders. "Shh...Reed, he's gone," she whispered, bowing her head onto his shoulder blade. She let out a choked noise that sounded like she was gagging before taking a deep breath.
"He killed him. I could've shot him--he killed him," Alden whispered, staring at Eugene's body. "I could've saved him." He looked at his hands and his face turned to disgust like he wanted to cut them off.
Colbie grabbed Reed's hand for a moment, listening to the whimpers of her teammates. Fury fueled her and she stood up, looking in the direction where Kale left. "Let's go." Her hand slipped out of Reed's.
You could've protected him. Thrown your shield at him, or something. You could've done something but you stood there. You're just as bad as Kale. You did nothing to save him.
"What?" Ruby whispered, looking confused. "He'll kill us, Colbie. What do you expect us to do?"
"What else can we do? We're Rune Wielders. You're backing out now? Eugene made us for this. I'm not backing down until I'm dead," Colbie said, starting to turn around. "Eugene would want this."
"He wouldn't want us to die for this!" Alden protested.
"What else can we do, Alden?" Colbie spun back around. "What else can we really do? We're here to save Oreun."
Nothing from the others that surrounded Eugene. Colbie sniffed and wiped at her nose before walking away. She'd do it herself. For Eugene.
"How are we going to even kill him?" Ruby shouted.
"We don't. We destroy the shrine."
Colbie kept walking, pressing on her tattoo. For possibly the last time, the shield slid its way onto her arm and she sighed, flexing for a perfect fit.
You could've used this--
"Giantess, where do you think you're going? You can't take him on without us!" Alden shouted, running after Colbie.
She could hear his sloshing getting closer. Colbie shook her head and smiled despite the overwhelming fear and guilt she felt. "Thanks, Alden," she said, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Reed and Ruby are coming too, I know it. They just need some time." Alden told her, nodding his head.
After a while, they could hear splashing behind them. They turned their heads to see Ruby dragging Reed through the bog, yelling at him to hurry up. Colbie and Alden stopped, watching in slight amusement as Reed stumbled over numerous things.
"We're coming! We're a team, remember!" Ruby shouted.
We all could've done something to help him and we didn't. I do not carry this burden alone, Colbie reminded herself, looking forward.
As soon as they stepped all together, they stopped for a moment. "For Eugene, right?" Alden asked, invoking nods from them.
"For Eugene," they all echoed.
Colbie didn't think that she would be doing this if it wasn't for Eugene. Sending herself and her friends into a practical massacre of themselves? All for a galaxy that had tried to kill them over and over again.
They walked together, weapons out--except Reed, who kept his hands hidden--and knelt down suddenly. They could see the structure half built in the horizon. Trees cut down and the bog had been completely drained, giving easy access to it.
When they saw it, something in the air changed. It couldn't be that easy. They all knew it, Kale knew it. There was something watching them.
"Alden, stay in the trees, okay? If you could get a clear shot at Kale or even inside the shrine itself, that would be great." Ruby looked at the horizon and frowned, trying to figure out the best course of action.
Alden broke off from the group and the feeling didn't leave. That meant Alden wasn't being watched--or maybe he had something else watching him.
A rustle in the grass behind them again and they all tensed up, ready to leap out of the way if they were being lifted into the air again by another trap.
Colbie gritted her teeth, unsure of what to do. They couldn't just stay here, kneeling here, could they? "Move forward a little--"
In the next moment, she was slammed against the water and her head went underwater. She screamed, feeling sharp claws pierce her back. Muddy water entered her nose and her mouth and she tried to spit it out to no avail.
Distorted words from above and growls coming from the cat-like creature alerted her to pick up her head, gasping for air. Then it went back under.
The cat was trying to drown her. She felt fury, then fear, course through her veins like nothing had been there before. She kicked her feet, wondering where Ruby was. She was going to drown. She swallowed another bunch of muddy water and felt herself start to get light headed, lungs burning as she kept her mouth shut.
Then the pressure was relieved and she gasped, scrambling to stand up in the water. She gagged, feeling the burning swamp water down her throat and in her lungs. Beside her laid the black cat, an arrow lodged in its throat.
Water came up and she threw up, watching it go back into the water. She wrinkled her nose and looked up, panting, to see Alden motion a peace sign. He was sitting in a tree, able to see everything that was going on. Colbie looked away before someone noticed he was there, watching him aim again at something behind her.
"Ruby!" Colbie shouted, spinning to hear the sounds of a struggle. She saw a hellhound, a paw on a girl's head.
Ruby.
It was the same hellhound that had ripped off her arm. "Enki!" she shouted, slamming her right arm against the shield. It created a banging noise and Enki looked up, howling in excitement.
"Come get me and finish the job, you mutt!" She cried out. "You came to get me twice already! Come get me for the last time!"
Enki wasted no time in leaping after her. Colbie bolted down into the clearing, almost stumbling because her lungs started to burn again. They weren't ready for the movement, but they had to be.
Please, Ruby, be alive. Be okay. Please. Please, she begged, looking up at the green sky.
There, in the corner of her eye, she saw Reed and Kale. Fighting. She couldn't believe it. It looked like he had a sword, and although he seemed to be sloppy, he was doing fine on his own. Neither of them had proper training for sword fighting, it seemed.
Alden leaped out the tree and broke into a run next to Colbie. "Do you think that we could use those two hellhounds--"
"Two?" Colbie shouted, looking behind her. Now two of them were chasing after them, howling with excitement at the thrill of the hunt. Behind her, she saw a flash of red hair sitting up, breathing heavily.
Alden shouted, "Ruby, help Reed!"
Ruby looked up, dazed, realizing what was happening. "Where's Reed?" She scrambled to get up, racing after them. She winced at the pain in her chest before running anyway.
"Fighting Kale!" Alden said, pulling Colbie up with him. "You're falling behind, Giantess. You want to become dog meat?"
"They're hellhounds, not dogs," Colbie said, seeing the shrine get closer. Her lungs were on fire and she thought that they might be constricting, getting smaller with each breath. "My lungs aren't...exactly top notch because of the water in them..." she wheezed out, looking pale.
"Don't touch the shrine!" Kale shrieked.
Colbie slid to the right, pulling Alden with her as the ground cracked beneath them. Something else was coming out of the soil--another hellhound. Colbie internally groaned, trying to keep a steady pace.
She had been made for this. Thank god for track. If only her lungs weren't making this any harder than it already was. It wasn't like she could stop, either.
"Alden, break off and shoot down two. I have an idea. Or try to. I just need one."
"What?" Alden shouted, bewildered.
"If we use Enki or whatever hellhound I get--" Colbie ducked as something tried to swipe at them from behind, "the hellhound will destroy the shrine, right?" She coughed and almost stumbled before Alden yanked at her arm, keeping her upright and running.
Alden went pale. "Colbie, you could die--"
"I won't. Kick off two of them, now!" Colbie shouted, shoving Alden into a different path.
Alden nodded and found two arrows, making a curve and shooting two of the hellhounds in the ribs, watching them skitter to a halt to find out who had hit them. Alden shot another arrow at one of them and darted away.
The two injured ones wasted no time in hunting down Alden. "Enki! You damn mutt, come get me! What are you?" she panted, feeling the strain of her legs against the broken and dry soil.
She felt one last burst of strength coming up, and she took a deep breath. Burning was rampaging in her lungs. This could be it. Looking over her shoulder, she smiled at everyone past the stitched skin of Enki.
Enki's hot breath made her blood run cold and she swallowed her fear, sprinting toward the shrine. This was it. "Come on, Enki! I'm right here!" she howled, standing in one spot. She lifted up her shield and knelt down, holding it overhead.
She would move as soon as it leaped. She would be safe.
The hellhound paused before leaping directly at Colbie.
She felt claws rake down her back and jaws latch around her right arm, and then the fear of her being thrown up into the air. Then she heard a rumble deep in the ground when Enki crashed full-force into the shrine.
Colbie shut her eyes, up in the air. For the first time in her life, she prayed that she would be alive after this.