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It was over. Etihw had put everything she could to defeat Ivlis, and now she could finally rest. She looked around and saw the thousands of bodies scattered on the plane, it was over. Everything was over.
She sighed and turned to smile happily at Kcalb in the distance, barely having the strength to run to him for a celebratory hug.
Kcalb stared at her with a worried look on his face. He looked like he was saying something but she couldn’t hear anything, her ears felt muffled. She looked around to see all their residents dead, but she figured long as she and Kcalb were together they could just rebuild everything again.
Etihw sighed, longing for the comfort of her bed next to her husband. She relaxed her shoulders and felt the exhaustion set in because she thought she could finally rest.
Until a sudden hot flash of pain burned through her stomach. Etihw had a moment to react to the sudden fireball that shot straight through her stomach. She held back screaming in agony while staring desperately at Kcalb.
She felt confused and shocked. How could Ivlis still be alive? Quickly turning to look at the perpetrator, she found him now dead and covered in smoke. He must’ve mustered all his strength for that one attack.
Her vision started to get blurry with tears and suddenly everything felt like too much. She could hear Kcalb screaming her name in agony. She could feel every nerve clinging to their last life, she tasted the blood dripping out her mouth. She could feel every particle burning. She was experiencing all the pain she’s never felt.
She stumbles towards Kcalb, her legs quivering with every step, she’s quick to fall forward, barely missing the floor as Kcalb slid across the floor to catch her in his arms.
Her senses grow numb but she can still feel an overbearing pressure surrounding her, her vision growing blurry but she can still see the shape of her beautiful husband as he stares at her.
She’s happy that at least Kcalb was alive. She knows she can rest easy as long as Kcalb’s safe, she knows that as long as Kcalb remained standing then everything would be alright.
Etihw assured herself that everything would be ok without her, yet she still couldn’t help but worry about Kcalb being too shy to rule a kingdom by himself.
<—</3
Kcalb refused to believe it was real. Etihw was the strongest person he knew so there was no way she could die. Right?
So why was he currently sobbing, holding Etihw’s body to his chest, and doing everything to stop the bleeding in her stomach?
He was choking on his sobs, but he kept yelling at her. “Why didn’t you look behind you!? You should’ve paid attention! You know you always need to check if the enemy’s dead before you relax!” Kcalb yelled and screamed. He kept blaming Etihw like it would do anything for the situation.
Though his sudden outbursts would be replaced with more sobbing. “Please Etihw! Wake up! C’mon Etihw you have to wake up! I can’t do this without you!” He sobbed and yelled, squeezing her body against his chest.
He looked at her again for a few moments, as if believing she would open her eyes and tell him it was just a joke. That she wasn’t dying. That she wasn’t already… dead.
“Etihw this joke isn’t funny anymore. You know I’m not a fan of your dark humor.” Kcalb stares at her, tears stream down his face while he stares in disbelief. He didn’t know what to do.
All he could do was make it worse, since all he can do is destroy the things he loves. He was just a devil. He had no way to heal other people unlike Etihw, he could only heal his minor injuries scattered across his skin.
He knew that and yet he still tried to use all his strength to stop the gaping burn from destroying more of her organs. He tried everything and yet nothing worked.
He knew nothing would work because he wasn’t like Eithw.
He knew he wasn’t able to do things like Etihw can.
He can’t heal people like Etihw can.
He knew he couldn’t live without Etihw in his life.
So he won’t.
Kcalb looked beside him and saw a discarded sword that Wodahs had discarded. It was dull and twisted and he knew it would hurt to stab someone with it.
So he did what any crazy man would do and picked the sword up, angling it at his neck and using both his hands to stab it right through his throat, twisting it to get the full effect of the Sword's edges.
Kcalb let go and returned his hands around Etihw’s body, he felt the hot pain surge throughout his head. He screamed until it was gurgled from coughing up blood. He quickly squeezed Etihw’s body. His silly imagination assumed he’d have enough strength to hold Etihw even through death.
But his god wasn’t here to give him that strength
So while he desperately clung to Etihw, his embrace suffocating and firm, Kcalb could feel his life slipping away. He felt his strength depleting and he felt like he could finally relax knowing Etihw was safe in his arms.
…
Until she wasn’t. Kcalb felt her body slipping away from his grasp, and that relaxation quickly turned to panic as he clawed at her to stay with him, his tear soaked face welling up again as fat ugly sobs fell from him as he cried to feel her body against his again.
He didn’t care if the body was cold, to him her body was warmer than any sun. He couldn’t bear the guilt of knowing his strength failed him for once. He prayed and yelled for just a bit more power. A little more strength to hold his wife.
Except His god was already dead. And so he watched through globs of tears as Etihw’s body rolled out of his arms, his face an absolute mess as he sobbed in pain. He wanted to feel her again.
He didn’t want Etihw to die without anyone to hold her. He wanted to make sure they were connected even throughout death.
He just wanted to hold her tighter than ever before.