"Your highness you must lie down now". My ladies and wet nurse swarm around me as they prepare for the baby's birth.
"Not yet," I grit my teeth and try to ignore my contractions, "my husband, I must find him."
"Don't worry, I find Calchantis!" William yells from outside my bedroom. "Thank you for telling me everything!"
I finally succumb to the pain and collapse on my bed. "The king! Find the king!" I yell at my ladies. "Get him here!!"
It feels like an eternity later when Edward finally enters my bedroom. He staggers over to my bedside and kisses my forehead. Blood is dripping from his neck and fingers. "How are you doing, my love?"
"You're covered in blood." I gasp. "Where were you? You didn't...."
"No," he clenches his fist, "that bastard escaped." He starts to walk back towards the door. "Don't worry, I'll get him."
"Edward, don't! Just stay with me," I beg through tears.
"I have to," he whispers before heading out the door.
I'm not sure how I have the strength, but I push myself off the bed and stumble after him. I see William tending to a heavily wounded Calchantis on the stairs. "We have to get going," he's saying.
"You're not going anywhere," Edward growls as he approaches them.
"Stop!" I cry after him.
"Natalie ? What are you doing?" He stares at me in shock.
"Please don't do this," I beg.
He ignores my and aims his sword at William. "Move. Now. Or else..."
"I would die for Catherine." William stands his ground.
"So would I, for my queen. And I would gladly kill as e."
I'm kneeling on the ground in pain as they start fighting. To my horror, Willliam is soon lying motionless on the ground. A wave of contractions hit me hard and I am left gasping on the cold, hard ground.
My ladies and wet nurses rush to my side. They're patting my back and stroking my hair. "You need to push now, Catherine, push," they urge me.
I start to push, and I can no longer focus on Edward's fight with Calchantis. A terrible pain is ripping my body apart and stars are dancing across my vision. The clash of swords ring through my ears...
——————-
Our child's cry is unlike any sound I have ever heard before. It is like sunshine, pure and bright.
My ladies pass her into my arms. She is a pale, bloody, little thing. "Edward," I try to sit up, "come."
"I'm here," he kneels down next to me and takes our daughter into his arms, "our little princess."
"Edward..." I stare at him in shock, "I'm still here."
"It was the true," he kisses my cheek. "The story was true."
I glance over at the two corpses by the stairs. "Edward..."
"I love you, Natalie."
A sudden wave of intense dizziness hits me and the world goes dark.