Fighting my way through the dense fog, I find myself groping through the open air. It was the early morning, as the sun had yet to rise and evaporate the low residing clouds that enclosed and suffocated me. The mist, so blinding as one could see no more than two feet ahead of themselves, emanated with an eerie glow.
The creatures of the night had yet to return to their homes. Straining, I could hear the sickening crack and shatter of tiny bones, and I knew some animal had just saved their life, while another lost theirs. I shivered.
The air was thick with the copper-bronze scent of drying blood. I couldn’t distinguish if it was human or otherwise, and I have yet to care. I stumbled, barely catching myself before falling. I would have found myself with my right eye pierced, gushing my own life-blood from the wound of a splintered arrow.
The fog was beginning to dissipate, and the shadowy figures of fallen bodies began to materialize. I knew I wouldn’t be able to handle the sight of my fallen comrades, those who I had come to know and cherish in a way no words would ever be able to describe. Fighting back the bile that pushed its acidic way into my mouth, I ran, willing myself to not allow the images of their broken, dead bodies to form in my mind.
The first few rays of sun crept over the hills that enshrouded the Eastern horizon. Their warmth comforted me in a way no arms could. Swallowing hard, I gazed out at what the light revealed, the mist had hidden. Bodies littered the banks of the great crystalline lake, pools of blood seeping into the sapphire waters. Tears clouded my vision as I looked upon my own shadow.
The call of voices shook me out of my sickening haze, and I turned to my right, squinting against the bright morning sun. He was there. He and a select few who had somehow managed to survive. Their voices sounded to me as is they were a choir of Fae come to save me from myself.
Fighting back the fatigue that threatened my collapse, I began to run. My legs worked, racing as if my life depended on it, though I had already survived the night. They saw me, and still more salty tears spilled down my face. I could see him start to approach, his own legs working despite their strain and contortion.
The twang of the bow only reached my ears after I felt the sharp head pierce my back. I stumbled, barely taking three steps before falling. I could still see him approaching, his steps more urgent now. Through my own blood soaked tears, I could see his eyes well up with the same salty liquid. As his knees hit the ground before me, my sight was gone. Everything fell silent. I could no longer feel the arrow piercing my heart.